Life Without Them
by Lark4560
Summary: Sakura's the only one left of her orginal three man cell. She must train a cell of her own now and she's running into some formilar attitudes. There is no part two. It's like years after NAruto and Sasuke's big fight. COMPLETE!
1. The team

The scolding water ran down my back and I shivered. How long ago had it been since I was warm? Four, five years? At least that maybe more. It had been so long since they died.

The water burned my skin and steam rolled in all directions but I couldn't stand the cold. The freezing, the ice that crept its way over my heart. Funny I used to have a heart. That was nice. I remember the warmth I felt, the heat that radiated from everyone around me. It felt good to remember and the ice receded just a little bit.

"Com'on Sakura!" A voice called interrupting my thoughts. "We don't want our little students to wait. Not like the seventh Hokage."

Ahh yes. Kakashi was always late. It used to make them so mad. I would like to see them mad again. I would like to see them happy again. I would like to see them again. It would be nice.

I shut off the water and stepped out of the shower, steam rolling off my body. I could see three burns, one on my arm one on my leg and one on stomach. Hmm. Perhaps the water was just a little too hot.

I wrapped the towel around me and scurried through the door sliding it away as I went. My clothes were next to my bed and with a shrug they were on. I went out to meet the voice.

Ino was sitting on the table, staring down at the ground smiling just a little. A tear just barely detected. I remembered too. Both of them. Their fierce competition and good natured hate for each other. The way they fed off each other in ways neither Ino nor I could imagine. Funny how she and I became friends after they died. There was no need to any more. And then we needed each other.

"Don't." I whispered. "They wouldn't want that."

Ino looked at me and smiled wider. She nodded and we jumped, out the window, to the roof across the road, down a ways and around the corner. On and on we went. I remembered how I would travel with them. The laughs, the fun, the idea they would get. Especially our team Maverick. I didn't know Ino had left. She was long gone before I woke up.

I heard my team before I saw them. They were in the middle of a very over used clearing with no grass and the trees almost too thin to even bother as cover. There was a boy with black hair and very bright blue eyes yelling at a brunette girl who was rolling her blue eyes in exasperation. She had a birth mark on her left ear in the shape of a small dove.

"Com'on Yabi!!" The boy glared at the other boy. "You can't seriously like Kariudo that much."

"Shut up, Taka!!" She yelled back.

The blond boy rolled his brown eyes in exasperation. I could see the anger in his shoulders and the impactice in his step. Well he wouldn't have to wait long would he?

I purposely shook my branch before dashing away across to the other side of the clearing and remained hidden in a bush. The boy tensed and waved his companions silent. They stood for two minutes before I tackled the girl and held a kunai to her throat. Both boys drew weapons and advanced but stopped when I jerked her head up and pressed the knife deeper to her throat. The black-haired boy held out pleading hand but I shook my head.

"By now, the girl would be dead," I whispered emotionlessly. "And both you and the blond would be mortally wounded. Next time keep your voice down."

I got off the girl who jumped to her feet and scurried behind the two boys glaring at me the entire time. I didn't smile, just blinked as all three advanced on me. The girl drew a throwing needle barely deadly unless hitting a vital place. Sometimes I wish I had died when we faced Haku. Then there would be no pain and no ice and I might have a heart. Maybe…

The girls threw her needles one by one each hidden in the shadow of another. I dodged them easily and both boys attacked in synchronization coming with a punch at with sides. I ducked and they hit each other in a very classic way. The girl was performing a jutsu but I hadn't to worry. The black haired falling boy fell into it instead. It was easy after that. The black haired boy was handicapped and the girl worn out by her attempt. The blond was still fighting but he wasn't faster then me. In less then ten minutes I had all three of them tied to a different tree and all their weapons removed. The weapons sat on the other end of the clearing far away.

"Now are you ready to listen to me?" I asked glumly. Their energy reminded me of when I was young and had certain friends. All of them nodded. "Alright then. If you must know I am your Sensei Haruno Sakura. You needn't have attacked me.

All three of them stopped squirming and looked at each other, at me, and back again. They repeated this for awhile but I got their attention when I moved towards the blond haired boy. He stiffened and the girl glared. I pulled off the gag and he spit licking his lips and wetting his mouth.

"How about we all say something about ourselves yes?" I offered. I had decided early to copy Kakshi's teaching as I had no idea how. "I'll go first. I am Hurano Sakura. Call me Sakura-sensei. I have no hobbies. I like nothing and I hate nothing. I want to be nothing and my goal is to make sure you don't die."

I nodded at the boy without the gag and he began looking perplexed. "I'm Izuma Kariudo. My hobby is training. I like to train. I hate not training or wasting time while I am training. I want to train some more and my goal is to train as hard as I can."

As I expected, this boy was almost like…. It didn't matter. He was all about training and maybe he needed to get a friend. Some one outside the Ninja Academy.

I walked to the boy who was in the middle and ripped off the gag. He smacked his lips and cleared his throat.

"Hi," he called loudly around him. "I'm Uchiha Taka. I like to eat chicken. And I want to be the eighth Hokage you'll see. I hate having to sallow food and my hobby is swimming. My goal is to beat Kariudo."

The girl made an exasperated noise through her gag and the blond rolled his eyes. I had heard of this boy. One of the many children Itachi had sired on his missions for the Akatsuki. This one was obviously not his personality type though he did look an awful lot like…never mind. Taka didn't have the Sharingan eye yet, but if he was related to Itachi there would be not doubt he would get it. I would have to keep a close eye on him. Itachi and…someone else were his relatives and both of them had turned against people. Better to be safe then sorry.

I removed the girl's gag and she coughed and managed to croak. "I am Inuzuka Yabi. Umm… I like…well it's not really some thing more like some one really… a boy…" She stole a glance at Kariudo. These words were sounding vaguely fimilar. "My hobby is collecting leaves and I hate cats. I want to be a good shinobi if not the best. And my goal is to master the basic jutsu's there are."

This girl was reasonable at least. She would never make an elite or even lead her cell but she would be a good second in command. She would be a good fighter a good thinker and her ruffled hair reminded me of Kiba.

"You're Kiba's girl aren't you?" I asked. Yabi looked startled but nodded. "Of course. I glad he at least survived. How's he doing, girl?"

"He's fine I think." She scrunched her nose like he often did. "I haven't seen him in a couple of months. When he's home, I'm training and when I'm home he's on a mission. I got his sense of smell though."

Yes she would be a fine ninja. I would be almost glad to teach her. Almost because I would never be glad until they came home. And they weren't ever. Never ever. Because they were dead. And I, I was still alive. To regret ever being so weak. Ever not being in control of either them. So that they didn't have to do that. Any of that.

"Alright," I stared at them face unreadable as it had been since that day. "I'll see you tomorrow at this time. Eat a good breakfast and don't be late. Because I won't tolerate lateness."

I untied each of them and the bowed in turn murmuring, "Sakura-sensei," before leaving each treading almost undetectable across the clearing. The Uchiha boy picked up his weapons and the four left over was split between the Kiba's girl and Izuma. It worried me just a little to find a boy so dependant on physical weapons and almost none of the mind but Tenten had survived although just barely and if he was of the Uchiha clan he would make it. I knew he would even though his family history wasn't so good.

I left after they did, leaving no trace of our activity as any good shinobi, and walked back to my house. Ino was already there. She was over all the time. Best of friends.


	2. Who Are They?

"You know they wouldn't want us to dwell in the past." Kakashi's voice sudden and quiet sliced through my thoughts and I jumped.

His eyes crinkled slightly and I knew he was smiling. A sad one but it was a smile. Something I couldn't do. I stood up from the monumental rock and faced him. He walked past me and bowed his head to the boulder beside mine. The grass waved around him and sometimes he disappeared. The trees waved with a warm breeze and I recalled the test we had as I lent against one of the three posts accompanying the monument.

How foolish were we? To think we could beat Kakashi-sensei. He was the best. That's why he was chosen for seventh Hokage. After Iruka and Tsunade had both given their lives to kill Orochimaru and the Akatsuki. It was natural. And he trained us with bells while reading _Make-out Violence. _Sometimes I miss those days. But I have no heart so I don't feel much.

"Sakura," Kakashi stood up and faced me. "It is natural for one to grieve but this long? It was bound to happen. They would have faced off anyway. Sasuke wanted to go and Naruto made you a promise. And he…well he never went back on those."

"I just wish….," I blinked at him. "I just wish we could have their bodies. But they blew each other up." I added bitterly.

Kakashi and I sat there in our silence for so long. And the pain. The pain from coming too close from hearing their names, the pain from knowing, knowing so much that all hope should be abandoned because you knew what was to come you knew what to do when it came. And you knew what you would see. It made my heart burn with a frozen flame made me block out all feeling and hurt myself and wish I was dead because frankly that was where I could see them.

Naruto with his blond hair and mess and laughing blue eyes. His scratchy over loud voice shouting incoherent promises and being too dramatic. His toothy little smile that made you want to beat him up and hug him all at the same time. I usually opted for the beating but now I wish I could hug him. I could squeeze him tight and make him stay by my side.

And Sasuke, Naruto's polar opposite. Quiet and strong. No irrational thoughts no diving into things with out thinking. Always a step ahead always in first. There to help me and Naruto. There to balance our team. With my mediocre talents Naruto's untapped chakra. Our team my family was the best. We beat Gaara of the Sand and we beat Orochimaru's guys and we beat everyone else. There were no problems.

"How do you like your students?" Kakashi's voice broke my thoughts once again although it was welcome in the crushing silence.

"They remind me out the old team Kakashi." I whispered almost drowning in the memories. "I didn't know some one from the Uchiha clan could be so loud. And you gave me Kiba's girl. Why would you do that?"

"Well, Kiba requested you. Said you were the only he was going to let train his daughter." He explained mildly. "And besides you guys have a bond formed by the death of comrades. As do you and I. That's why we can talk so openly. No matter what, Sakura, you can talk to me."

I smiled at him. "Do you miss the sixth Hokage?"

Kakashi winced and closed his eye. His shoulders tensed just a little and his jaw tightened. He faced away from me and didn't answer. But I knew Kakashi and he would tell me. He would have to.

"Yes." He mumbled. "I miss Iruka. It was my fault he died. He was my best friend."

I nodded. It wasn't hard to understand. He and I both lost friends, comrades, and much more in the many missions we had completed. It was nothing special. It happened all the time. Although two members of the same cell don't usually blast each other to very small, undetectable pieces.

"Sakura!" Ino's voice startled me though Kakashi seem unaffected. She was running towards me her blond hair swinging and blue eyes flashing. She glanced behind her urgently and I could feel adrenaline rush into my veins.

"Sakura it's one of your students. He's done something." She pointed towards the village and I hopped into a tree to get a better look.

Half of the village was on fire people were lining up to start a bucket brigade. I could see several ninja performing a water jutsu. I could see a pack of ninja's chasing a lone figure from rooftop to rooftop. I glared at it and began the very short journey back.

In three minutes I joined the chase for the Uchiha. I followed him for awhile. He took what appeared to be random turns going different ways but it wasn't long before I noticed a pattern. Every three bounds he would turn left then after four bounds he would turn right when he was going south. When he went north, it was bounds forward two to the right, four forward and six to the left. I left the pack and made my way to where he would land next.

The Uchiha landed right next to me. Weasel-quick I snatched his arm and whirled him to face me. His grinning face made me wince because it was so like Naruto's, but it faded when he saw mine. The other ninja's froze when I lifted my hand and swiftly dispersed leaving Uchiha to deal with me. His eyes widened when I let go but he didn't try to run.

"What were you thinking?" I asked mildly.

"Um…well see it wasn't my fault." He mumbled and I settled myself down to hear and excellent story. "I was cooking. Making myself some chicken see? And suddenly, the fifth Hokage appeared to me. Boy he startled me. I dropped my napkin into the fire and the whole place went up in smoke. I'm lucky to get out alive."

Well he certainly was creative. I grabbed his ear and towed him along with me hearing his ouch's and distraught murmurs. I showed him a place. It was near an old barn just outside of Konohagakure. The forest was slowly creeping up around it and the ivy covered all the windows. A chipmunk chattered nastily and threw a walnut at him. It almost made me want to smile.

"Uchiha, why don't you tell me the truth?" I cocked my head trying to make myself look interested but nothing could interest me. I was already planning my punishment for him.

"Well, that was part of the truth…" The boy rubbed forehead innocently and I recalled how someone else some one not so different would rub his neck. "I got mad and I pushed some one and they pushed me back and I dropped a kerchief into the fire. But it was an accident. You'll see."

I shrugged, If the boy wasn't going to tell me the truth and explain to me that he was a pyromaniac that was fine. I knew already. He smelled like smoke and I say matches hidden all over his body.

"Very well then," I deliberated slightly before deciding between the appropriate punishments. "I shall make you take water to those who can't afford it. It has to be done and you suddenly have an opening. Do it after training tomorrow and make sure you don't screw up."

Then I walked away. The boy could, would, find his way back, it wasn't so hard. I jumped back to the monument. It was still my day with my family and I wanted to spend it there with them.

I got to the clearing and froze still in the branch of the tree. Two men shrouded in black cloaks nothing like the Akatsuki stood staring at the monuments. They said nothing, they stood stiller then stone, and they gave me a bad feeling. I could see their hair, and blond with wild spiky hair and a black-haired boy whose hair, though long didn't spike but fell around his face longer in the front the back. I couldn't see their faces. They were hidden but a mask like Kakashi's and goggles covered their eyes. They wore no Ninja head bands and I couldn't tell where they were from.

I jumped out of the tree and landed behind them. The blond whirled and froze knocking the black haired. He drew a kunai and threw it at me without turning around. The aim was dead on and the speed almost to fast to track. I would have to take it. But just before it hit me another kunai knocked it out of the path.

The blond had thrown it. The back-haired man twisted to see me and he froze as well. I glared at each of them and they backed up slowly their cloaks hiding the movement of their feet making them float. I advanced summoning chakra and getting ready to take on both.

"Who are you?" My voice was soft flat with no emotion as per usual. The blond stepped forward though the black-haired stepped a second after.

"We aren't here to hurt you." The blond called in a scratchy almost too high for a boy voice. "We want to visit our friends. The ones who were lost in the war."

"Then you are too early. By three months. Go home and come back when we celebrate." I ordered. "Go on. I can't have you here."

"Let us visit please." The blond was the only one to talk. "We just want to say hello. We haven't been back for a while."

"Well then hurry." I relented tired of fighting and knowing that the men could probably kill me.

They turned their back on me, showing unusual trust in a ninja you didn't know. I listened very carefully to make sure neither would try a jutsu. All I heard was quiet breathing and the blond whisper, "Good bye Chouji, Shikamaru. I'm sorry for not being there Hinata. Hope your bugs found a new home Shino. I guess I did win, huh, Neji? Goodbye friends. We miss you."

Before I could ask how they knew my family, they jumped and disappeared into the forest. I was going to follow them until I felt a presence behind me. I didn't get a chance to whirl before I heard, "Thank you, Sakura." And felt a hand knock me out.


	3. Dreams

_Naruto danced around me like a little kid. His mouth moved but I couldn't hear the words. He shouted behind him and smiled at me showing slightly pointed teeth and grabbed my hand. A voice, high and strong, though a little scratchy, echoed around the area I was in, though I couldn't understand the words. _

_It was white all around me. Up and to the left. Down and right. Front and back. Just pure, solid white. Not even a shadow. A thin layer of mist was coating the ground. It was a little disconcerting but it helped me focus on Naruto._

_The voice called again and this time I could identify the words. "Come one Sakura. Meet my family."_

_Naruto was still pulling me along, laughing silently and skipping this way and that. He circled me but always kept a hand in mine. He was just like I remember, high activity, wearing his jacket, smiling, laughing, and showing off. _

_His body wiggled like there was music. Maybe there was. I don't know, I couldn't hear anything. He stopped and pointed ahead, glancing at me the way he would show some one a prize. _

"_Look Sakura, here they come." The voice called to me, but none of the appearing people's mouths moved. Some how that didn't bother me._

_I peered and recognized Hinata, smiling and dancing around looking happier then I had ever seen her. She bounced up to Naruto and kissed his cheek and he hugged her affectionately. Behind her I saw, the fifth Hokage, Lady Tsunade, smiled at a little girl who had Naruto's blond hair and Hinata's eyes. She jumped off Tsunade's lap and hid her face in her mother's waist._

_Neji stepped forward offering his hand but Shikamaru and Chouji beat him to mine. They looked back at him and laughed. I expected Neji to frown but he rolled his eyes and nodded at me instead. Temari appeared from the mist and wrapped an arm around Shikamaru's waist. Gaara, who had stepped out from behind Tsunade, crinkled his nose but didn't look unhappy about their relationship. _

"_Look Sakura." The voice commanded. "This is the family I could have had if you hadn't sent me after Sasuke. See how happy we could have been."_

_Naruto stopped smiling and stepped away from me. I reached for him but he frowned and dodged away. I stepped towards him but he backed away and walked away from me. I ran after him but his family, Hinata and Tsunade and Shikamaru and every one else made a wall. Before my very eyes, they morphed into a brick wall, extending farer then I could see, each direction._

_And then every thing changed. The wall dispersed and the white became a forest with tall trees and too much moss covering each of them. Shadow's cast most of my surrounding in darkness and I tensed waiting for an attack. A dark figure approached. I couldn't make out the face until he was right next to me. It was Sasuke._

_He smiled at me and motioned me to walk with him I gratefully accepted. He didn't try to take my hand but that didn't bother me. Sasuke wasn't good touching people. He had said it made him uncomfortable._

_We walked in silence, the birds singing and a stream bubbling some where to our left. It was peaceful and serene and perfect. He kept glancing at me and smiling and blushing and I felt some thing big was going to happen. And it did._

"_Sakura, will you hug me?" His voice was deeper then I remembered and much more mature but it was his voice._

_I reached towards him and started to put my arms around him feeling excited and a little unnerved by this change. He closed his eyes and waited but my arms passed straight through him. I tried again but no such luck. He frowned and opened his eyes. _

"_Why don't you ever do what I ask?" His black eyes glared at me and he stepped back. "What is wrong with you? You're weak. I hate you. I hate you."_

_He backed up. I tried to stop him tried to make him listen but my voice, my entire being wouldn't, couldn't move. I wanted to cry, wanted to yell, wanted him to come back but he had disappeared into the forest. My heart ached to have him back and my stomach heaved. The vomit fell and coated my front but I still couldn't move. And then my world shifted again._

_It was the memorial clearing. The three posts and the two boulders were there and so were the two men in their black coats and covered faces. They stood side by side and watched me. The vomit was gone and I was able to move. I trotted towards them removing a Kunai as I went. Just before I could call to them they moved in perfect synchronization. Each pulled the masks off their face and lifted to goggles. I froze._

"_Did you meet my family, Sakura?" Naruto asked. The whiskers on his face even more prominent. I recognized the voice from the white room. _

_I nodded and began to move as if in a dream towards them my arm out starched as the kunai dropped from my numb fingers. Naruto rolled his eyes and turned to Sasuke._

"_I still hate you. You're still weak. You're useless." Sasuke's eyes never left my face and I'm sure he saw the pain the unbearable pain break my features. Naruto stepped forward and began to tap my fore head over and over. _

"_Got that? We hate you. Lets get it into you head." He laughed cruelly and kept tapping over and over and over._

I sat up in a flash scaring away the bird that had steeled on my chest. I was still in the clearing but no masked men were there. That's right they had left but not before one of them knocked me out.

Who were they? Why did they want to visit my family? Why were they covering their identity? How had they known to repeat the last time I saw Sasuke? Were they able to see inside my mind? What were they doing here? What were their names? Where were they from? What was their purpose here? How did they move so fast? Did they have any special training? Were they a danger to Konohagakure?

The questions bounced around my head. I felt I knew the answer to almost all of them but where? I couldn't remember what had made me wake up or anything else.

The sky around me was a fiery pink. The shadows encroached out fro the forest covering everything. I stood up shakily. My head whirled and my stomach gurgled hungrily. I began to walk back to the village. It was a slow march and it took me three times more then normal. It was dark by the time I reached my house. The light was on and I wondered who was there.

It didn't really bother me. It was probably Ino or Kakashi. They were always at my house, always helping out. I knew they worried about me. This would make it worse. I climbed the stars slowly drawing on the wall for support. Five minutes later, I was at the door to my apartment. It was cracked slightly and through it I could hear pleading.

"Don't hurt me. I wasn't going to take much." The voice thick with fear and worry was defiantly male. So Ino had caught a robber. It was odd for one to visit my home but here he was.

I pushed open the door and froze. In my living room was a man. He was obviously poor, dirty and covered in tatted clothes. His eyes were red with crying and he bowed to the feet of the people who had stopped him. But he didn't startle me.

The two men from the clearing were towering above him. Their cloaks made them look larger then they probably were but that didn't make them less intimidating. The black-haired one held the man but the jacket and the blond was crouched by his head. It looked as if they had caught him in the cat. But what were they doing here?

All three of the men gazed at me, and I back at them. I could feel surprise flicker across my face before I realized what I was seeing. It was a hallucination due to lack of food. I'd never had one of them before but them again I'd never skipped a meal.

"Alright, I'm going to go into my kitchen and make a snack." I shook my head trying to clear it. "When I come back, all of you will be gone because I will have eaten."

The cloaked men looked at each other and shrugged. Once again the blond approached me and asked, "Are you okay?"

"No." I blinked bitterly. "You knocked me out and I missed lunch. Ino must be worried. And now I'm hallucinating. And talking to one. I need some food before I call Ino."

And I turned away and stumbled into my kitchen. I took out some leftover rice and a little chicken and heated them in my microwave. I peeked out and the hallucinations were still there in the same position. I shook my head and turned back to my now re heated meal. I ate quick and walked out. The house was back to its normal people less way. What a relief.

I yawned and entered my room. No one was there as expected. I changed into my pajamas and crawled into my twin bed. I was out before I could roll over.

Lifewithoutthemlifewithoutthemlifewithouthem

Sorry for not posting in a while. I was on a vacation with little to no acsess to a computer. I've decided to keep a word count out of sheer boredum. The word count for all three chapters is 3,605. Because it's oh so much. ~Lark.


	4. Visitors

Yawning, I stretched and sat up. I blearily looked around my room and jumped when I saw a tall messy haired man with a rather large dog leaning against the wall, staring at me. He smiled at me and I rolled my eyes.

"Kiba," I grumbled. "Next time a little warning would be nice."

He shrugged and followed me into my kitchen. I pulled out a raw steak from my freezer and began to cook it until Akamaru snatched it from my pan and swallowed it without chewing.

"You'll make yourself sick, dear." I told him but he just smiled a dog smile and barked, knocking a picture off my wall. Kiba smiled.

I trotted back to my room and changed making sure Kiba couldn't see, as he had a nasty habit of peeking. Or at least he did when I saw him last. Hmm… it was a long time ago. Maybe I would see more him know that I had his kid to train.

He was sitting in a chair talking quietly to Akamaru when I entered my living room. My strange hallucination came back to me and I froze for a second before closely inspecting my room just in case may what I saw was real. Nothing was…wait there was a magazine missing. I kept it for Ino when she came around and now it was gone. Akamaru barked, blowing my hair back and causing my apartment to be filled with the sent of raw meat and bad breath.

Kiba motioned for me to sit, though I wasn't sure he was allowed to do that. This was my home, not his, but I sat anyway. Akamaru jumped me and began to frantically lick my face. Soon I was covered in dog drool and Kiba was laughing. Akamaru, panting. Leaned against me, when he was done with my bath and I scratched his ears as I knew he liked.

"Well, what are you here for?" I asked after everything had settled down.

Kiba turned somber-ish though a grin kept flitting across his lips. "Well it's about Yabi." He paused and frowned at his pet. "Akamaru missed you. Anyway, Yabi has a dog just like me."

"So?" I raised an eyebrow. "She can bring it."

"Yes." Kiba agreed. "But she doesn't want to be singled out from Izuma and Uchiha. I wondered if you would put in more time alone after training for her. As, you know a one on one thing."

"Oh?" I frowned considering. "Alright, fine. But she had better put her back into it because I'm not wasting my time if she doesn't want to learn. Tell her to bring her dog but make it wait in the forest. I'll deal with her after."

Kiba nodded and stood up. Akamaru whined and Kiba rolled his eyes. "He wants to stay with you for a little bit longer." He explained, jerking a finger at his dog. "And I just can't leave him. Can we stay?"

I shrugged. "We haven't caught up in a while. Ino might come over though. She'll want to spoil him."

"You already do." Kiba laughed and flopped back down on my chair. "Say would you like a dog? I've got a litter and I dunno what to do with them. I mean eight dogs are enough not counting the one I'm sure to kept from this litter. And you could use the company."

"Are insinuating that I need to get out more?" I asked, trying to sound playful as I would have done before but Kiba still watched me. "Anyway," I rushed on. "I think about it. I do get kinda lonely."

Kiba was about to answer when a knock interrupted him. He frowned and looked at Akamaru who was bouncing around with joy, then sigh. I didn't have to get up, before Ino came bounding in the room.

She beamed around at us until her eyes fell on the oversized dog on the carpet. She cooed at him and fell to her knees taking the dogs face in her hands and pushing her forehead against his. Akamaru looked like he was going to pass out from sheer bliss of being fawned over.

"God Kiba," Ino called her attention still on the dog. "Do you ever pet him? He's so attention starved."

"Yes I pet him." Kiba retorted. "And my wife pets him and my three children pet him. The neighbors pet him. People in the middle of the street pet. My enemies pet him. Every one pets him. He gets too much attention."

Ino laughed and sat down in the floor with Akamaru. She and Kiba continued to fight over hoe much attention the animal got and I settled down to listen to the almost comforting chatter. My thoughts wandered back to the missing magazine.

The men had been there last night then. What were they doing in my home? Why were they so interest with me? It was obvious that they knew their way around Konoha. But why were the here? Were they a threat? Were they do-gooders? They had stopped a robbery at my house. But was that a coincidence? Why did they insist on all the mystery? It was beginning to make me rather mad. Why did I have such a strange feeling that I knew them? What was about them that kept tugging at my heart? Should I tell my friends? Should I tell Kakashi?

Before I could delve deeper into this mystery and give myself a migraine, another knock on my door was answered by one of Akamaru's booming barks. I sighed and got up. Who ever it was had better be important because I wasn't leaving my apartment to it was my day off. Again. Kakashi insisted I take these more often then most just because I had no heart and he worried about it.

I wrenched open the door and found myself face to face with Tenten. She was grinning and holding a small white puppy with brown streaks here and there and black paws. The puppy barked and I could hear Akamaru's nail clicking o my hardwood floor as he approached. I opened the door wider and swept my arm out allowing Tenten to come in. The puppy squirmed when it saw Akamaru and Akamaru's answering wiggle knocked over one of my tables.

"Hurry and put that puppy down, Tenten." I commanded. "Before the big one knocks over my entire house."

"Her name is Hana." Tenten beamed as she set the puppy down. The dogs trotted away from us back down to my living room.

We followed them making small chatter until we saw Ino nose to nose with Hana cooing and making sweet baby talk. Tenten laughed and crashed in the couch. My place was filling up fast.

"I got just back form your place Kiba." Tenten said. "Your lovely wife wants you home before nine or she'll kill one of the puppies for each hour your gone." All movement stopped as the dogs and Ino caught on to what she said. Akamaru glanced with whap appeared to me dog worry at his master. And Ino covered Hana's ears. Tenten caught the mood and added quickly. "That's what she said anyway. I don't believe it."

"Kuma is a bit of a cat person sometimes." Kiba shook his head and shrugged. "So I'll be home by nine. She worries too, I guess."

"Hey," Ino switched from baby talk and back to regular in seconds where as it would take me much longer. I swear the girl had a gift. "Kiba, when are you going to offer me a dog? You did that to Tenten and Sakura. What about me?"

"Well I think," Kiba sat up straight and said primly in a pompous voice. "That you lack the responsibility to watch over another life."

Ino shrieked but was interrupted by Tenten, who put in with a giggling voice, "I can just see a poor dog dressed in clothes being forced to ride in Ino's purse"

Kiba laughed and Ino looked fakely furious. The friendly bickering went on with urges from me and Tenten. About an hour later, I stood up and offered everyone dinner. They all accepted and I went to work cooking a large meat filled meal making sure to keep scraps for the pets. Just as I was setting out plates and dragging over chairs the door was knocked upon for the third time that night. What was this a party house?

I opened the door trying not to show my irritation and was surrounded by strong, warm, green arms. I froze unsure what to do. But then Rock Lee pulled back and walked right in.

"And where is my darling wife?" He asked looking around. He was just the same as every one else had been. Big bushy eyebrows, dorky bowl haircut, weights on all of his extending limbs.

"Look," Tenten picked up Hana. "Kiba sold her to me. I hope you like her. Her name is Hana."

Rock lifted the puppy from his wife's arms, looked at it and smiled at her. "She is most magnificent."

Tenten laughed and I set an extra place at the table. We all crowded around and ate. They enjoyed each other and I almost felt like I could care. It was funny ever since getting my team three days ago I found that I could start feeing things. Sure it still hurt if it was happy but I knew there was no chance of happy and even feeling irritation had been different. Ever since I met the most unpromising team ever. Our last training had shown me that.

"Kiba," I broke through the comfortable silence in which everyone had paused to swallow. "How much for a dog?"

Akamaru, looking as thrilled as a dog could, licked my hand transferring half chewed food on it. I grimaced but Kiba didn't seem to notice. He was sifting through his pockets and soon, removed a couple of dog treats, that both Hana and Akamaru looked delighted to see and a crinkled piece of paper.

"Let's see…." Kiba turned the paper this way and that squinting, trying to make out the faded writing. "Kuma says the lowest we'll take is forty dollars. Sorry I can get you a discount if you want but it'll only drop down to thirty-five."

I got up and went to my room. I dug under my mattress for my wallet which was kept there for all weathers. I walked back to and produced forty dollars.

"Come around Monday after training." Kiba took the money and stood up. "I gotta go. It's eight and Kuma will be mad."

He and Akamaru led my friends out the door leaving me to clean up the mess as all good friends do. I sighed and got to work.

**Lifewithouthemlifewithouthemlifewithoutthem**

Word count: 5,534 for the whole thing. Because it's once again o so amazing. ~Lark


	5. Training

"Duck!" I shouted at Izuma, who hit the dust and watched as a kunai sailed over his head.

He jumped right back up and sent a kunai back towards the spot where the other had attacked. The bushes shuffled and a brunette head poked out. Inuzuka Yabi glared at him.

"I'm your team mate, dolt." She hissed. "I saw Taka over in those bushes. Besides, now you know where Sakura-sensei is. Or rather was because you wasted time with attacking me."

I was proud. It was a new feeling but the girl had shown more promise then I had originally thought. She was faster and quieter after only two practices. Inuzuka also thought way ahead. She was smarter then the Uchiha at least and the Izuma only thought in battle, not all the time at she did. I hadn't met her dog yet but I was sure it would resemble her aptitude to learn.

I flinched as Uchiha Taka jumped out from a tree and leapt for the Izuma. Izuma rolled his eyes and threw five throwing stars at Uchiha. Uchiha rolled in the air and dodged all but one of them. The last star was blocked by a large stick I'd thrown. It grazed Uchiha's ear but he ignored it.

I stepped out from behind my tree and raced towards the girl. Her eyes widened as she saw that she would have to face. I kicked her lightly in the stomach, just hard enough to lose her breath and send her flying back into a tree. I threw four shuriken at her and she raised her arms to block. They whizzed past her each catching her jacket and at trapping her to the tree. She squirmed and I thought I heard a small growl in the forest but no dog appeared.

"Stop." Izuma's voice called to me, serious and commanding.

I spun and my mouth fell open in a shocking disbelief. Izuma had caught Uchiha in a headlock, the exact same I had used with the girl the first day I had caught them. He was holding kunai to Uchiha's throat and grinning broadly. It had not been ten seconds and my teammate had gotten caught. Hmmm…this was a problem.

"I say," I wondered closer to them and Izuma stiffened. "You got yourself in quite the trap didn't you, Uchiha? And what shall I do about it?"

"I said stop." Izuma was beside himself. He knew what to do to catch the hostage but he had no idea what to after that. He was in for a lesson.

"Izuma," I said softly keeping my eyes lowered still padding softly towards them one small step at a time. "Please don't hurt him. I know you don't want to. And I promise I'll declare you winner. I swear. Just let him go."

Izuma had panic in his eyes. He could just barely get past the hard core, yelling bluffing and threatening for a hostage but this soft ad given up approach was entirely new. I could see him try to figure out how he should respond and keep tracking my movements.

"Please," I started to beg; allowing my voice to become hoarse and tears fill my eyes, though I was still heading towards him. "Please. Please don't hurt him. He's no use to you. Please I'll do anything just give him back. You can have anything. Anything in the entire world. Just leave him be. Take me instead."

I was really getting to the kid. His eyes were darting around looking for an escape route but there was none. His gaze avoided mine and I seriously doubted that he had ever faced a crying female before. To him this was a strange and holy sight. His mentor, his sensei, crying, trying to save a teammate he didn't even like all that much. His head cocked.

"NO!!" I heard Inuzuka shout from behind me her struggling increased as she no doubt saw through my charade. Smart, clever girl. "NO! Don't listen. Kariudo, don't listen to her. Listen to me. Focus on me. You have to throw something at her. It's a trick."

Izuma Kariudo flinched when he heard another feminine voice but he obeyed as he would have done with me had the girl not butted in. Slowly he pulled a shuriken out of his pocket and threw it half heartedly at me. I could have dodged it. The way the boy used his weapons, he could hit dead on and no doubt kill with just this little thing but that would ruin my play. Instead I shifted just a little, making it look like a stumble, a half hearted attempt to dodge, and the ninja star hit me in my left shoulder. I felt a shock of pain and warm blood drip down but it didn't stop my slow relentless pace towards him.

I could see the wide sheer terror on his face. Even the girl had fallen silent, finally thinking this was real, that they had truly reduced me to tears. Ahh how I wished the day would come when I could cry. For real, not just playacting. It would be in pure joy because it would mean my two favorite Nin would have come home. That day would never come. I would just have to stick with faking.

"Throw one again!" The girl had sensed a change in my mood. Ugh I had forgotten her father's talent for detecting emotions. And of course she would have inherited it.

Izuma threw another. I saw it coming for me but it wasn't even close to my heart. I let it hit me again and the Uchiha for the first time since being caught struggled in his captor's arms. He glared at Inuzuka for telling Izuma what to do. And then a concerned look at me. So he worried. So sweet so much like Naruto.

Izuma threw shuriken after shuriken at me each with less accuracy and strength then before as Inuzuka told him. I allowed each to hit me landing every where but in my head, heart or vital places. With each small thunk, Uchiha struggled more and more but with each Nin star I stepped closer to them until I was two yards away and Izuma Kariudo was broken.

"Here," He growled, still trying to look tough but sounded more like he was about to cry, and pushed Uchiha Taka at me.

As soon as he was out of reach I summoned my chakra and focused it on my hand. With a small growl, I hit the ground with amazing force, releasing my chakra and letting the earth shake out in waves. Both Uchiha and Izuma fell. I stood up and began pulling the Nin stars out of my skin, knowing that in the fight sure to come a small touch would put me in pain. Expanding my chakra I healed myself. During the fight my blood would pump faster and I would lose too much chakra. Thank God Tsunade had decided to give me medical training even in my empty shell. Maybe she just wanted to watch me, to make sure I was alright.

Izuma was on his feet, watching me with wide astonished eyes before they narrowed and he drew his fighting stance. I flexed into mine and flicked a wayward bang out of my eyes. We stared at each other for a long while before he ran at me. He jumped and tried to kick me but I snatched his foot from the air and sent him whirling away. A muffle oomph told me he had landed safely and unharmed but would still be on the ground for awhile. I picked up four shuriken and threw them at him pining him to the ground as I had done with Inuzuka. He struggled but couldn't get up.

"We win." I called to Uchiha and Inuzuka. "Uchiha unpin her while I get him."

He obeyed my command and they walked over to where Izuma and I had sat down in the shade of a large oak tree. I really enjoyed my training clearing. I had found it a long time ago and the only people who knew about it were me and my team. It was large and surrounded by thick dark trees that would muffle even the loudest screams. And it had a stream running at the southwest side, allowing any training with water. Besides it was rather peaceful.

"Sakura-sensei." Murmured Inuzuka Yabi as she sat. "I think that was dirty play. You knew full well what would happen. It was a nasty trick."

I felt like smiling but I knew I couldn't. "Yes, you're right, it was nasty. But do you really think an enemy wouldn't sink so low?" All three of them shook their heads and I continued. "Yabi, you shouldn't have come out into the open. I didn't know where you were even after you threw the kunai. Other then that, you did as well as expected. Taka, next time wait for the signal okay? You could have died in a real fight and what would you have accomplished? Noth-"

I was cut off by Uchiha as he shouted, "When I become Hokage I won't need to wait for the signal, I'll be giving it you'll!"

"Well," I almost rolled my eyes but he was too much like Naruto to crush his dreams. "When that day comes, you can give all the orders you want until then I'll give them. And Kariudo you did well when you were attacked but you must remember to think after the fight. N the case I just put you through the best way you could have reacted was to draw blood so I would know you were serious or kill Taka."

Izuma nodded looking ashamed and Uchiha's mouth fell open as he began to protests, "Kill me? But that's, that's, not right."

"That's what happens when you get caught." Inuzuka crowed in a sing song voice.

Though she left her feelings behind when she was fighting, it was much too obvious how attracted she was to Izuma and how much she wasn't to Uchiha. Sometimes that let her not listen quite so well to a brilliant plan, the rare times Uchiha gave it. I hoped her dog could talk some sense into her or at least like Uchiha more. He needed it to stay loyal to this team.

I dismissed them but held Inuzuka back to begin her training. It would be our first time and I just wanted to lay down rules and asses how good she was with her dog.

**lifewithouthemlifewithouthemlifewithouthem**

I'll write about Yabi's training in the next chapter. I have meaning for all the names if you want to know check my profile under the stories bit. Word count is 7,313. ~Lark


	6. Men who don't exsist?

Kiba's girl walked toward me looking kinda nervous. She glanced into the forest and back at em multiple times and I wondered if she would get whiplash. Eventually she came to stand right in front of me and looked apprehensively into my eyes. I had no doubt she was regretting her decision to work one on one with me. I wouldn't like to work one on one with me either.

"Bring out your dog." I commanded, knowing it would make her feel better to have some one with her. Besides she'd need to bring it out some times.

Inuzuka Yabi whistled and I heard a small woof answer. A small dog, smaller then Akamaru had been when he was at that age, came bounding out of the forest. It was obviously female. Its feet were too big for its body, the only betrayal to the size she would get. Her eyes were a sharp green and her body, skinny, was covered in thick fur gray on the back, top of the tail, head and on most of the muzzle. The rest was white. Her tail plumed with thicker fur, as she scrambled towards us.

When she reached us she barked and jumped landing in her master's arms and burrowing her way into a pocket from which she watched my suspiciously, obviously not forgetting the earlier training session.

"Don't be rude." Inuzuka hissed and turned her gaze back to me. "Her name is Taiyou. She's just shy."

"Show me what you can do with her." I pointed toward a post. "Attack that. If you can knock it over, I can teach you and the dog. If you can't you're too incompetent to bother train with it at all."

The dog growled but I ignored it instead just raising an eyebrow in a clear sign that she should begin now or not at all. She tore off the dog still in her pocket towards the post and I saw her draw a kunai. She handed it to her pocket and then threw her dog. It was an odd site and I found that I didn't like it at all but kept my tongue.

The dog landed on the post, swallowed a ration pellet as well as the kunai and began to grow. Larger and larger until the post began to sink slowly into the ground. Then the dog swallowed the kunai. However this would not count as knocking it over and Inuzuka and her dog began to push against it. Even that was useless, I had scurried it to the ground with chakra so I could practice my mega punch and it still be there. Her dog seemed to realize this first and stopped pushing. A conversation of sorts passed between then and they stepped back and seemed to revaluate the post. Then I saw Inuzuka give her pet a ration pellet and the already Akamaru size puppy grew to an even larger stage.

Without warning, both whirled on me and attacked. The dog literally picked me up off the ground by the waist and swung me around a few times making me slightly sick. Inuzuka watched with mild curiosity as if she had seen this before just never used it on me. Which of course she hadn't.

"Sakura-sensei," she called up to me. "I have seen your hidden meaning. Taiyou is like her father. Only she can sense when the chakra is in use and how. Please release the post."

I shook my head, not trusting myself to open my mouth without vomiting. Taiyou growled and shook me just enough to make my hands smack together and my stomach clench. I summoned chakra to my hands but before I could do anything with that, the dog tighten it's grip on me making me bleed in vital areas so I would have to heal those before anything. Such as a mega punch. I sure hoped this dog could control blood lust while I bled into her mouth. Her grip loosened, allowing my blood to flow freely down her throat.

Quickly, I redirected my chakra and healed the wounds. They were deep and hitting almost all of my vital organs leaving me no choice but to summon all the chakra I had to keep myself from bleeding to death. No doubt was the dogs plan. Taiyou was a bad name for it. Kenmei was better.

"Alright fine." I sighed. "Let me down and I'll release it.

"No." The girl argued. "You must release it first. Sakura-Sensei, we don't trust you that much. Not after your little fun with Kariudo."

I released the post and waited as both she and the dog turned to the post. You could see large cracks in it as its chakra reinforcement was lifted. Inuzuka trotted over to and pushed it with her little finger. It fell over breaking in half as it landed on the ground. She looked back at us and the dog dropped me. I spun in the air and landed on my hands and knees feeling weakened by the lack of chakra.

"Well done Inuzuka." I panted standing, watching as the dog shrunk and coughed up the knife. "You do know that your team must know about his soon enough?"

"What?!" I could see pure panic in her eyes. It was obvious that she thought herself a freak for using an animal as a weapon. It was also obvious that she was calculating how it would hurt her chances of going out with Kariudo. "My father never said anything about that."

"If Kiba with held the truth then take it up with him. " I pressed on ignoring the rest of her complaints. "You need trust on your team or you're not going anywhere. They'll have to know sometime. The most I can do for you is train you best I can without your team, then tell them. They'll be fine with it, I'm sure. Every one loves dogs."

Inuzuka nodded looking thoroughly depressed. Her dog yipped and crawled back into her pocket. It squirmed in there then popped out its head and licked her chin. Inuzuka lifted the corner of her mouth in a half hearted attempt to smile but it didn't work.

"Or," I suggested. "You don't have to use Taiyou at all. You could be a normal ninja." The dog growled at me and Inuzuka looked vaguely surprised. "You won't go as far as you could but you'll not have to deal with her."

The dog whimpered and looked at her master but Inuzuka shook her head. "No thank you, Sakura-sensei. I will tell them."

I nodded and dismissed her watching her walk away with a light trot talking to her pocket. It reminded me of her father. She would be a good shinobi, not the best or spectacular or anything but a good, dependable, hardworking one. It was good to just have a normal one my team.

I walked towards the stream and dropped on a rock under a willow close enough to inspect my reflection. I had changed so much since Sasuke and Naruto had died. My hair had grown long again but lost some of its shine and it was a darker pink then before. My green eyes were still bright and a nice forest green but they had lost their sparkle. My skin was, if that was possible, paler then before. I was skinnier then ever and the hard muscles I had, were hidden making me look small and feeble. My mouth had acquired a downward pull that made me look irrevocably sad. Which I was but…it made no difference. My forehead had shrunk to a most reasonable size and it put me in an even worse mood because Sasuke and Naruto would never see me like this.

I stared closer and in the moving blurry reflection I saw the two men again. They stood very very still though their black cloaks rustled in the very small breeze. Their goggled eyes stared at me and I could see the imprint of their lips smiling slightly. One of them, the blond again waved eagerly at me in the reflection. The black haired one stood as motionlessly as ever but they way he held his body showed me he was also happy to see me. They stood in the branches of the willow.

I whirled faster then I ever had before. But they had disappeared. Oh great now I was being stalked by hallucinations because it wasn't bad enough that I saw them. It was a sure sign I was crazy and I could imagine telling that to Kakashi.

"_Hokage Kakashi, I'm being stalked men who don't exist. Is it okay if I rip their heads off?"_

Yes that would go down well. And then something pricked my mind. The magazine. It had disappeared after the no-existent men and the robber showed up at my house. Which means that they had to be real, which meant I was being stalked. And THAT meant I could tell Kakashi that men, which are real but only showed up when I was alone, were stalking me. Which didn't sound much better make believe people. It was simply a choice of words and I never was gifted in that area. Oh what fun reporting these men I would have.

Unless I didn't. They didn't seem a threat to Konoha just to me and I could take care of them myself. Besides it wasn't like I want to live much longer. Yes there was no need tattle on them at all.

**Lifewithouthemlifewithoutthemlifewithoutthem**

Sorry for not up dating in a while. It had been crazy at school with the science fair going on. And I was sick today... So sorry. Word Count: 8,931. Two more chapter's I'll have added another digit. ~Lark


	7. The ring

It had been three weeks since I started training Inuzuka and her dog. They were shaping up well although the entire team on whole had no chance of even a D ranked mission. There was no trust between Izuma and Uchiha and Inuzuka had to much trust in Izuma. That made the lack of trust worse because every one but Inuzuka herself that Uchiha had a crush on her. The attempts he had made on Izuma's life so far had been violent though un-succeeding.

The men stalking men had gotten worse. I saw them every day. In a store, at training, outside my windows. More often each day. I wanted to catch them but they were both so fast. I tried, tried, tried so hard to catch one, get close enough to touch one but the moment they realized I'd seen them they disappeared. I could see the people nearest them blink. It was the only thing that made me sure I wasn't crazy. Cause boy it sure felt like I was.

I stopped at the Kiba's door and knocked. Behind it I could hear barks. Small large loud and soft, they echoed loudly outside. And then the door was thrown open and Kiba's wife was standing proudly in its place.

Kuma was a tall proud woman with high cheek bones and sleek black hair. It reached to her mid waist and swished when she moved. She had bangs and it was legend that they were the only part of her hair she cut, out of morning the loss of her best friend in the war. She was short and thin and her green eyes were watching me distrustfully. Her waist was cocked to the left. Her arms folded over her chest and she tapped her small feet. In all she was impressive and really mad.

"What!?" She barked at me sounding like the dog behind her. "No we don't want anything. What ever it is, I'm already signed up for it. I can't take your survey so just go away."

"Um…" I glanced sideways looking for something to say. "Actually Kiba said he'd sell me a dog…. But I'll come back later."

"Oh!" Her eyes widened and her mouth formed an 'o' before she blushed and smiled at em. She had a nice smile for a woman who looked as haggard as she. "I'm sorry Sakura. I didn't know it was you. Come in come in."

She ushered me into her home and walked away motioning for me to follow her. I did gazing around at the small plain walls with no pictures and dim lights. All of it smelled like dogs. It was cramped but the kitchen we entered was bright and large. A child with rough black hair and green eyes watched us enter before turning back to his food.

The kitchen expressed what the hall didn't. The walls were full of scribbles and pictures. The wood floor was covered in crumbs and a large rug. It had wide windows and a small chandler hanging over and oak table. There was a bar at which the child sat and it was long enough to have three stools beneath the over hanging counter. The kitchen was airy and nice. In the corner was a pen and from the pen one could hear barks. Many, tinny, shrill barks.

"This is my son, Iwamaru." Kuma petted his head as he rolled his eyes. "Come in dear. I'll make you some tea. Kiba has told us how sad you are. And lonely. He mentioned that too. We'll have a nice chat after you look at the puppies. They're over there in tat corner."

"Mom," Iwamaru moaned frowning at her and throwing a glance at me. "That's Haruno Sakura. Her sensei was the seventh Hokage and her teammates were Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto. She would know that as soon as she entered" His voice lowered to a whisper that I could've heard at Kakshi's office. "Do you think she remembers that fight between them?"

I winced and pretended not to notice how both of them watched as I walked towards the pen. Inside newspaper littered the floor and three toys were being chewed another forgotten in a corner. But what caught my attention most was the four puppies in the pen itself.

One, a male, had brown fur and a white chest. His paws were white too. He was contentedly chewing a toy as if uttered a feeble squeak. He was intent of his toy and his nose twitched when the fluffy part brushed his nose. He sneezed.

A female was sitting in the corner back facing me chewing another toy. She was brown with black tail tip and ears. Her tail was thick a plumed as it waved happily. Her teeth were strong and white. She yawned but kept chewing.

The second female was brown with a black tail tip and white chest. She seemed to be a cross of her brother and sister. Her teeth gnawed away at her toy and she sneezed when the feathers hit her nose.

But the fourth, the last female was pure black. Not a hint of brown or white on her. Her paws were over large and her tail was plumed in a thick wonderful brush. Her eyes were bright blue and the expression on her face was a look of dog frustration. She was scratching at the floor whining and trying to bite through. She didn't even notice me even as her siblings did. They crowded around me but she kept up her digging.

Iwamaru had wandered over and thoroughly inflamed my curiosity when he mentioned. "She does that all day. We're not quite sure why but she doesn't stop. We put mashed meat in their toys but she ignores it. We think there's something wrong with her brain."

I reached out about to pick her up but he stopped me. "You don't want a crazy dog Haruno Sakura. Besides if you pick her up she'll bite you. She's done it to me and everyone else."

I shrugged and stretched out my arms. Her siblings watched as if amazed that some one would pass them up and go for their psychotic sister. My hand connected to the soft fur of her neck and I grabbed her. She squirmed and wriggled as I lifted her into my arms. The moment she was infolded in them, she stopped squirming and looked up at me seeing me for the first time. She licked my chin whined anxiously and looked back at her spot. Then back up at me.

I frowned and shoved her into Iwamaru's arms. Instantly she bit him. And he yelped. She bit him again but I was too focused to hear him again. The wood was scratched open in a tiny sliver and I could see something shinning through. I slipped my nails into the crack and pulled ripping p the wood and earning an indignant cry from Kuma. Inside the small hole was a shining flashing ring. I let chakra flow to my eyes and the chakra emanating from the ring almost blinded me.

I lifted it from the hole and both mother and son gasped. The puppy had stopped squirming and was glaring at the ring. She growled. And I smiled at her.

"Kuma. I'll take that tea now." I said as brightly as I could. I set the ring down in the middle of the counter. "And I have a couple of questions for you."

The woman nodded and set out the cups. Iwamaru shoved the dog in my arms and sat down too back to his food. The dog barked happily at me and licked my chin. I sat down to my tea and took a sip. It was wonderful and suddenly I could see why Kiba had married the woman who he had sworn never to. He cooking was wonderful.

"Alright." I set down the cup and patted the dogs head. "How long have you been n this house?"

"Just a couple years." Kuma settled down across to me and stared at the ring on the counter.

"And who lived here before you?"

"It was an embassy for Amegakure."

"How long has she been scratching at the floor?"

"All her life."

"How much will you take for her?"

"Twenty cause you might've saved our life."

"When can I have her?"

"Now." And then she stood up and took away my tea.

I pulled out my money and handed it over. She took it. She had shown no sign of fear but her hands shook. I nodded reassuringly as I could as I picked up the ring. The puppy in my arms froze and whined, her blue eyes focused on ring, but her face up turned to me.

"Don't worry, Ookami." I whispered. Louder I added. "I'll take this to see Kakashi. He'll know what to do. Thanks for the dog."

As I was leaving I heard Iwamaru say, "Look how cool she is. She used the seventh Hokage's name. Yabi is so lucky."

**Chuckling**, I closed the door and made my way down the crowded street. Ookami, my dog, was still tense as she focused on the ring. We…well I walked down an alley and she yipped. This time she was looking over my shoulder. I whirled and at the end of the alley were the two men.

They stood as they always did, looking delighted to see me. I couldn't understand it. They saw me almost every day and yet they beamed (as well as one could beam with a mask over their mouth and goggles) every time they set eyes one me. I began to walk towards them but as usual they disappeared with a blink. I was beginning to give up trying to stop them and just wanted to meet them. Why were the obsessed with me?

I puzzled over the same questions I had asked myself the first time I woke up. I hadn't realized how close we were to the to the Hokage's office until I ran into Kakashi himself. He dusted himself off mildly and looked down at me.

"If you wanted to show me your new dog, Sakura," He teased. "I will gladly look at her after my lunch break."

"I didn't come to show you my dog." I answered stiffly. "I came to show my new ring."

I held it up and Kakashi's eyes widen but he remained calm. "Well," he sighed. "There goes my lunch break."

He opened the door and together we ascended the stairs that led to his office. I wondered how this discussion would go.

**Lifewithouthemlifewithouthemlifewithouthem**

Hi. I'm kinda worried that I might forget this story. I do that a lot. If you guys could help me remember by pming or reveiwing or something I probably won't. This isn't a ploy to get your reveiws. I love getting them and stuff but I really don't mind if you do or don't. i just really like this story but I will forget it. Anyway any reminder woud help. Word count: 10,747. Yes i've reached the 10 thousands. I'm moving up in this world. ~Lark.


	8. Mission

"Alright." I clapped my hands in a very fake way of showing enthusiasm. Ookami watched me warily. "I've got us a mission."

Izuma raised an eyebrow and he and Inuzuka exchanged a glance but it was Uchiha who really was skeptical. He frowned and glared me.

"Oh yea?" He asked. "And why would you do that? You keep saying that we suck."

It was a fair question but I hadn't placed my opinion of the team in those exact words. Kariudo nodded his head and Inuzuka looked amazed that Uchiha could ask such an in depth question.

"Well this is exactly what the team needs." I tried to smile, really I did but the best I could do was raise my eyebrows. "We need to get out there see how you work under pressure. Besides it's a D ranked mission and it'll help you learn your history."

"And what is this mission?" Izuma asked before Taka could protest the rank of it.

I recalled what Kakashi and I had talked about.

_**Flashback  
**__I entered Kakashi's office ad he shut the door before sitting down in his chair. He took the ring and my new dog, my black Ookami, yipped happily that it was out of my grasp. Kakashi inspected the ring as I inspected it. After a while he put it down and looked at me, smiling._

"_It's just a ring for storing chakra." He said. "We'll need to return it to Amegakure. I'll send someone on it right away."_

"_Put me on it." I offered as Ookami sniffed my ear. It tickled. "My team needs the experience and this could help."_

"_And you need to get out." He added._

_I frowned, opened my mouth to protest but changed my mind. Maybe he was right. Maybe I could smile when I came back. And it would help me get closer to my team. Yes leaving Konoha would be good for me._

"_We leave tomorrow then." I stood up and gently set Ookami on the floor. _

_Her tail thudded on the floor and she yipped, staring up at me. I moved towards the door and she followed. It was a relief. Now I didn't have to carry her everywhere until I could train her. She seemed to like me. We trotted out of the office.  
__**End Flashback**_

I explained it to them and sent them off, with instruction to meet us at the gates at noon. That was two hours away. Izuma had expressed worry as to what he would tell is family but I said I would take care of it. The parents would understand better if I told them. Besides I had to visit Kiba anyway.

I walked back to the road with Ookami at my heels. I had discovered last night that she didn't like to let me leave her eye sight and she already knew most of the commands I had given her. She was a bright young happy puppy and the only think that appeared to worry her was my safety. But that was in no danger.

She growled and I turned. The two men were behind me watching as always. This time I didn't let it bother me. Instead I waved to them and continued walking. Ookami looked worriedly at the side but followed with a dog look of confusion. The last time I had seen them, early this morning, I had lunged at one and almost, almost pulled of his mask and goggles but he had dodged and they disappeared.

"Don't worry." I bent down and took her face in between my hands. "I'm tired of hurting them. Besides, if they attack, we can handle them."

The only response I got was a lick on the nose and a face full of puppy breath. I stood up and we continued. The men had disappeared. I reached Izuma's house first. I knocked but no one was home. With a sigh, I trotted off. Kiba could tell them when he saw them.

We reached Kiba's house next and when I knocked on the door, it was Iwamaru who answered. Beaming he let me in and led the way down the hall to the kitchen, calling to his family as he did. I settled down on a stool and waited, Ookami sitting patiently at my feet.

"Hey Sakura." Kiba called from the hall. I couldn't see his face. It was hidden in Akamaru's shadow. "Glad you bought the crazy pooch. You need her to bring a little more sanity to your life."

"I'm kidnapping your daughter and her dog." I said as he entered he kitchen. Ookami stood up and she and Akamaru exchanged sniffs.

"Yabi told us." Kiba replied.

"Can you tell Izuma's parents? I couldn't get a hold of them."

"Of course. If you want."

"Good now I need to talk to Yabi about Taiyou."

"I'll go get her." Kiba winked at me and strolled back down the hall. Akamaru watched him go but stayed with Ookami and me.

As I waited I took Ookami back over to see her siblings. Her brother yawned when his sisters woke him from his nap but he was just as excited to see Ookami as they were. But his excitement increased when Akamaru poked his nose into the pen. Ookami sniffed her siblings and grabbed a toy from the corner. She proudly brought it to me and thus we began a game of tug-a-war. I won when I ripped it from her teeth but Akamaru was feeling that the game was unfair. With out hesitation, he snatched the toy from my hand and dropped it in front of my puppy. She took it up happily and I almost laughed when the other three pounced on her. Akamaru snorted.

"Sakura-sensei." I heard Yabi say behind me. As I turned she bowed. "Welcome to my home. You wanted to see me?"

"Yes I did." I looked for her dog and found Taiyou in the pocket. "This would be an excellent time for you to tell Izuma and Uchiha about Taiyou."

"But-" She began to protest but Kuma interrupted. I hadn't seen her enter the room.

"Yabi." She barked. "Don't argue with your sensei. She knows what she's talking about. I need your help with lunch come along." And then she walked away. Back down the hall.

"Will you be ready for our leave?" I asked looking at my student. "I can get her to excuse you."

"No thank you Sakura-sensei. I will be fine." Yabi dipped her head and rushed to follow her mother.

I raised my eye at Akamaru but it was Kiba who answered my question. "Kuma is feeling the strain of her only daughter leaving for her first mission. She loves Yabi and she didn't want her to become a ninja. She worries."

I lifted the corner of my mouth and suddenly Kiba looked surprised. He glanced around him and then back at me. Akamaru barked with excitement and Kiba began to laugh. He began to laugh so hard that he needed a drink when he had finished. After he set his drink down, he looked at me so relieved that one might have thought I had told him that no his wife wasn't pregnant.

"What?" I growled and Ookami sensing my mood growled too, finally stopping her play.

"You looked like one day you could be happy again." Kiba elaborated. "Like one day and maybe soon you could smile. What brought the change? I want to get them flowers."

I rolled my eyes and answered. "I won't be smiling any time soon. Sasuke and Naruto still haven't come back.

"But you will be happy."

"Maybe." I agreed tired of fighting. "I have to go and take care of Uchiha's mother. She worries for her son. Or so he tells me."

I lifted Ookami out of her box and marched out of the house. We traveled down alleys and across bridges until we reached a small house on the outskirts of town hidden in the wall's shadows.

Outside was a woman with bright blue eyes and curly red hair. She was sweating with the heat and when she sat up from her gardening to wipe her brow a child, with red hair and green eyes, ran towards her. She hugged the little girl and frowned at the house. A male voice could be heard yelling at someone. I heard Taka's voice yell back.

"Uh hello." I called to the woman. She blinked and stood up.

"Hi, how can I help you?" She stuck out her hand and I shook it.

"Um I would like to speak with you and your husband about Taka."

"Oh." The woman shot an anxious look at the house but nodded.

She motioned to wait here and went inside. The little child looked up at me with wide eyes. I blinked at her and she ran inside too. I waited. Soon a man with green eyes and blond hair, the woman and Taka were marching out to meet me.

"Right what did the little brat do now?" The man snarled at me shooting a glare at Taka. "I knew we shouldn'ta kept 'im. Shoulda given 'im up when we had the chance."

I winced but ignored the rude comment. "Taka and his team are going on a mission. I'm his sensei. He has no choice in the matter and I just wanted you to be aware."

"You can keep 'im." The man hissed more towards Taka then me. "We don't want the likes o' you 'round no more."

Taka glared and mumbled. "I'm ready to go now Sakura-sensei. We can go. Goodbye mom."

The woman hugged him and stared at me. "Just bring him back safe."

I nodded and we set off. Ookami, who hadn't followed me onto the property, led the way with Taka and me behind. I had known that he had a harder life. Not many people were willing to house a blood relative to Akatsuki but I didn't know that he was living with one. Taka's mother obviously loved him but the man seemed to hate him. It did not make a good living situation for anyone.

When we had reached the gates, we found that Inuzuka and Izuma already waiting for us. Ookami trained her gaze on Inuzuka's pocket but she didn't give Taiyou away. I nodded to all of them and we set off.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

Hi. i want to thank my reveiwers. They're great. Word count is 12,540. ~Lark


	9. Reasons and Excuses

Traveling was easy and interesting. Izuma kept silent watching all around him for any signs of danger and Inuzuka was talking to him quietly. Uchiha had been unusually silent but it was expected. Ookami was weaving back and forth and back and forth in an effort to find all the new smells there were along a forest path.

The forest itself was bright and alive. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves but didn't make hearing impossible and sunlight melted through the canopy casting shadows and light dappling the dirt path we walked on. A distant stream trickled and bubbled just off the path. Birds could be heard cooing and twittering and sometimes the bark of a distant wolf. Ookami always perked up when we heard one but settled after a few paces.

I wanted to stop, to close my eyes and breathe. Let myself relax into a comfortable traveling but something, something held me back. Maybe it was the silence from Taka or the quiet whispering from Inuzuka that hid some other sound but I was nervous. It felt like I was being watched, but no where I looked could I find the cloaked men.

Where had they gone, my silent stalkers? What had they wanted with me? Were they still here, watching? Who were they? Why were they following me, of all people? Did they think I would tell them how to heal? Why not see Tsunade for that? Did they need someone who knew how to heal? Why even pick Konoha? Why not go to some small village where people would be eager to help? Who had trained them? Which village did they come from? Why did I feel like I knew the answers for most of the questions?

The questions unsettled me. Maybe they were keeping me from relaxing. I needed to know the answers or forget them all before I went insane. Besides, on a mission to Amegakure, where the Akatsuki had once kept house, I needed my wits about me.

I straightened, sighed and looked around. Inuzuka had stopped talking and was strolling along by Uchiha who looked marginally better then before. Izuma was ahead of the two still gazing around in silence. Ookami had disappeared behind dome bushes but I could hear her snuffling. The birds were still chirping and it helped me take my mind off certain things.

We walked until dusk. The sky was dark except for the teasing glow on the western horizon. The birds quietly sat in their nests but other night sounds were coming. Crickets were chirping and scuffles on either side of the road were the only sign that the nocturnal animals were waking. Ookami returned to my side.

Leading the way, I showed my team a hidden nook off the side of the road to the left. It was just big enough to fit four sleeping bags and a cooking fire. Without many words I sent Izuma to set up a fire pit and all the sleeping rolls. I had Uchiha scout the area though I already knew it was safe. Inuzuka and I set off to find firewood.

We walked far enough away from the nook not be heard by any of the boys. Inuzuka set about work bending and picking up sticks and mumbling under her breath until I stopped her.

"Inuzuka," I whispered on the off chance that Taka had come so close. "Now would be the best time to tell the boys."

She froze but Taiyou, who I had forgotten in her pocket, wriggled her head out. The dog yipped and Ookami, who had strayed into the forest, trotted back her tongue lagging out. Taiyou leaped from her pocket and jumped down to meet my dog. Both of them, yapping and whining, danced around our feet. We watched them for awhile.

"Sakura-sensei." Yabi asked. "Do really think that it's a good time?"

"Of course." I agreed. "Now is the best time. They'll understand without the pressure of the village. And of their families."

"When?"

"After dinner. Men are less cranky when they have a full stomach."

Inuzuka nodded and continued her task of picking firewood with my help. We finished with record time and though she was a little reluctant Taiyou jumped back into Inuzuka's pocket. The walk back to the campsite was silent and longer then before. By now it was dark and it was getting colder. There were more, louder, scratchings in the darkness. Ookami whimpered and I picked her up. Who would suspect a completely black dog be scared of the dark?

When we returned we found our beds rolled out and Uchiha shouting at Izuma. Izuma was standing coolly, looking like he had just seen the bottom of his shoe after he had squished particularly large bug. Uchiha was pointing and waving wildly. Yabi raced over and tried to stop Taka but from what I heard it seemed that Kariudo had purposely thrown Uchiha's roll in a very tall tree. With out warning, Inuzuka was shouting at Izuma too. He suddenly looked sheepish.

I watched mildly. Had I done that with Naruto and Sasuke at any point? No it was always Sasuke. Always. And Naruto never gave up on me. What a sweet boy he was. I could only imagine that man he would have grown up to be. As well as Sasuke.

I summoned my chakra to my feet and stuck myself to the tree trunk. With multiple thwunks I had gotten the attention of my students. I heard Uchiha stop yelling first then Izuma. Ookami was whining and running circles around the tree. I reached the branch with the sleeping roll on it and released my chakra. The limb was sturdy and would support my weigh. I made my way to the end of the branch dodging other limbs and branches. I pulled the bag off the twigs and jumped. I liked the feeling of the air against my face and decided I could get to like flying. I landed with a soft thump in front of the row of impressed faces.

"See," I said handing the bag back to Uchiha. "It was only a small problem. Nothing to fight over. You can argue when one of you kills Yabi."

"Wow!!" I winced when Taka shouted. "That was so cool!!! How do you do it?"

I waved a hand at him and dug in our packs for the dried meat. I pulled out just enough to feed everyone and directed everyone to begin making our dinner. Inuzuka chopped the meat and Uchiha cooking it. Izuma was setting out plates. Before long our food was ready and eaten. Not a word was spoken during dinner but after was when the chatter came.

"You guys…" Yabi stood up nervously and I saw her pocket squirm. "I have to tell you something. Please don't be mad at me. I don't want you to be mad at me."

"What?" Izuma asked casually. "Is it about you training with you dog?"

"How did you know?" Inuzuka gasped as Taiyou's head popped out.

"Aww…" Uchiha stood up and reached for the puppy. Ookami rested her head on my knees. "It wasn't hard. You kept staying behind and we got curious."

"We followed you back and watched your last training session." Izuma elaborated. "You're very good."

"And you knew that didn't you?" Inuzuka growled at me. I nodded. "Oh great. Every one knew but me. Don't tell me, Taiyou, you knew too?"

The dog yipped and Ookami barked. Inuzuka rolled her eyes and sat back down nearer to Uchiha so she could keep an eye on her dog.

"Sakura-sensei," I heard Izuma ask quietly. I knew what he wanted to know and it bugged me but it was best to tell them. "How come you don't have emotion's? You playact well and I've seen you smile at some people but it's never real."

The fire dimmed and so did Uchiha's coos over Taiyou. Inuzuka leaned forward and all other activity ceased.

"You know the story about Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto?" I stared into the fire, determined to ignore the swift exchange of looks between my students. "Do you know who their last member of team Kakashi was?"

"Well its said Sakura Haruno…" Inuzuka whispered. "But we simply assumed that it was some one different….my brother was right. YOU are the last member."

"Yes. I was their last teammate. I was there when they beat Momochi Zabuza, the Demon of the Hidden Mist. And Haku. And in the Chunin exams when Sasuke was bitten by Orchimaru and when Naruto fought Gaara of the Sand. I was there for it all and I was guarding the village when Sasuke went to seek power from Orchimaru. I pleaded him to take me with him because I loved him. I still do but he knocked me out and left so I made Naruto follow him. And they fought and blew each other to pieces before Kakashi could reach them.

"I was left hollow and alone. Yamanaka Ino, Rock Lee, Inuzuka Kiba, and Tenten were the only survivors after the war but none was left like me. I had given my heart to Sasuke and my soul went with Naruto. They still have them. Even in death. I swore the day they died to be the best I could be and no more. I had nothing left to live for. Two year I threw myself into any danger any thing that would have should have killed me but nothing worked. Then I came back to Konoha to train and now here I am. An empty shell with no emotions."

I stood up and walked towards my sleeping bag, Ookami on my heels. I reached into my bag and pulled out two headbands. The symbols were of the Leaf village. On the one in my right hand there was a long scratch all the way across the head band horizontally and on the one in my left, six vertical scratches. They were all I had left on my two favorite shinobi.

"These are what we found at the fight site." I held them in the fire light and let the students gaze wondrously at them. "They are the most dear thing to me. Now you should go to bed. I'll take first watch."

All of them went with little complaint and I settled down by the dimming fire. It wasn't at all long before I heard the tell tale snores. It was longer even though when I head the tell tale braking of a stick. I stood up swiftly but relaxed, though I probably shouldn't have, when it was only my stalkers.

I nodded to them and they back at me. Their dark cloaks helped them blend in with the shadows and sometimes it seemed like one would disappear but then they would shift and emerge. We, all three of us, stayed where we were until I got bored and opened my mouth.

"We hadn't known you would miss them so much." The blond beat me too it. "We expected you to get on with your life."

"Who are you?" I whispered. "Why do you speak of me like you know me?"

"Don't ask questions we can't answer." The black haired one spoke for the first time. His voice was deeper then a pool and rung with a large past. I enjoyed listening to him talk as much as I liked the other one's voice.

"Why can't you answer them?" I asked. "Why are you here? What do you want with me? Who are you?"

"Stop it." The blond commanded. "You know we won't answer them. It's none of your business. Really we want to learn more about you. You had a very interesting story."

So I told them. I told them all about me. All about Sasuke and Naruto and Ookami who slept at my side. And how Kiba, Tenten, Rock Lee, and Ino were doing. About my childhood, about mother and father, and my siblings. I told them everything and just as I was about to ask them again they disappeared and Taka tapped my shoulder.

"Sakura-sensei." He whispered. "Are you going to tell Kariudo and Yabi about my family?"

"No." I answered. "That's your business only. Would you like to take watch now, seeing as you're already up?"

Taka nodded and I retired to my sleeping roll. Ookami followed and squirmed her way in, her large paws pushed against my back. I tried to think over the very little I had learned from the two men but I was out like a light with Ookami snoring in my ears.

**LifewithouthemLifewithouthmLifewihtouthem**

Guys I'm sorry for not updating. I've been busy with school work and I found this really cool free online yahoo game called virtuial villagers and it the funnest. Only you have to feed them everyday and its long and tedious. Any way Im sorry so i made this chapter extra long. Word count is 14,966. ~Lark


	10. Captured and Alive

I woke up to shouts and Ookami's barks. Without thinking I jumped to my feet and through a knife to Taka who was struggling in the grip of a nin. He caught it and stabbed. The nin growled and let go but just came back to attack this time with help from another nin who emerged from the forest. I managed to see Kariudo fighting three nin and Yabi with Taiyou were attacking four nin. Ookami was biting a nin and growling.

I was tackled. With out thinking I twisted landing on my back and punched the nin. He growled but blood poured down his face obstructing his eyesight. I rolled out from under him and kicked him but my attention was distracted when a woman through a shuriken at me. I dipped backward and it floated over me. I flipped up and rushed the woman. She grinned and I felt two strong arms wrap around my waist. I summoned my chakra to my fist and punched behind me. I felt a nose and a jaw break before the man let go. I rushed the woman. She smiled again and pulled. Two silver threads extending from her hand pulled the shuriken back towards me. I ducked and she impaled herself right in the stomach. Blood poured from her and she tipped backward, fell over. I heard a kunai wish towards me and before I could duck it hit my arm. I flinched.

I ran to Taka who was tied up and yelling. Three steps and I felt drowsy my mind fogging up and my heart rate slowed. The chakra in my hands flowed away back to my core. I reached for it but couldn't find it. Two steps and I forgot what I was doing. Who was that boy shouting? And the black dog muzzled? Who were the two kids being tied up right now? One step and I hit the ground.

_I was floating in a green room. Green ceiling and walls and floors. The bed was green and the chairs were green and my skin was green. I liked it here even though I was completely naked. In this green. I thought of Naruto how he would've liked it here. And how Sasuke wouldn't have. I sat down wanting to cry. My green was broken. Blue on the wall burst forth like flowers and my sheets turned a bright sky blue. Anger coursed through me. Who had the right to change my green? Who dared? Inside the blue red rushed. My pillows turned red and the ceiling red as well. I thought it looked nice and I felt just a tiny bit of happiness flow through me. The only thing that turned yellow was my chairs but it offset the room quiet nicely. I liked my room like this. Until I looked at me skin. It was multicolored everything. Blue and green competed for the place above my heart. Red swathed everything with streaks of small yellow. I hated it. Hated what it had down to my body. Before I could see black emerge in the corners I woke up._

I sat up. It was very bright. I wanted to shut my eyes but I had to find my companions. Where were they? I felt something stir to my right. It was Ookami. She was whimpering in her sleep. I stretched my arm out to her but they were tied to my body. I glared at them. Taka groaned. I saw him three feet behind me. He squirmed and popped open his blue eyes. He stared at me and I shrugged. Then I heard a small muffled yip. Taiyou was barked through her muzzle at Yabi who was still sleeping. Kariudo was laying three feet behind her staring around him. All of us were gagged.

I pushed Ookami and she woke. She awkwardly climbed to her feet and looked at me. I snapped my fingers and she stumbled over to them. Her muzzle pushed into my hand and I felt the band of rope. I ripped it off and she nipped my. I held my roped hands to her and she began to chew excited at the new toy. It was slow and very wet but I had no doubt that eventually she would gnaw through them.

She didn't get the chance. Three nin marched through the door. I recognized the woman I'd fought. She and her companions were all wearing dark Akatsuki cloaks and staring at us. The woman had dark brown hair and green eyes. The man in her right had blond hair and red eyes. But it was the other person who surprised me.

It was a girl no more then ten years old. She had bright sliver eyes and her pupils were just a slit. Her nose was short and small and her lips full and big. Her face was scarred and she had no eyebrows. Her hair was blood red and stringy. She was small thin.

They stared at us and we back at them. The girl flicked her head and the others pulled Taka to his feet. He struggled and I tried to reach kick them but they dodged. Ookami growled and she and Taiyou rushed them. The woman kicked them. The fell whimpering and whining and I heard Yabi scream.

"Uchiha Taka." The girl spoke. Her voice was that of an old woman crackled and rusty. "You would be more useful here then with your village. Come. I'll get you some tea."

Both women and the man left, dragging Taka behind them. Yabi watched with sad eyes and Kariudo tried in vain to stand. I sat and waited. When the door shut I snapped my fingers again and Ookami came back to her toy. She chewed and chewed and soon I felt my rope loosen. It wasn't enough to get out but it was going to be. Taiyou had started the same on Yabi while Kariudo watched the door.

All three of us jumped when it slid open. The two men in the black cloaks were standing there. They were staring at me. I shrugged. With a sigh the blond came over and untied me, giving Ookami a gentle pat. The black haired one stood by the door as the blond and I untied Kariudo and Yabi.

"What are you doing?" I whispered but the blond shushed me.

They led us out the door into a small hallway. I could tell we were deep underground. The walls dripped and it felt could. Ookami shifted at me side and I heard Taiyou whimper. They led us down tunnels and through rooms. Once we stopped and let four cloaked Akatsuki members tramp by. Soon we were at a door that underneath we could see light.

"What about Taka?" I heard Yabi whisper.

"Excuse me." I hissed towards the men. "We're missing Taka. Could you get us to him?"

"He's in there." The blond whispered motioning towards the door. "With at least twenty nin."

"Well then lets go get him." Kariudo offered.

"Wait." The black haired man spoke for the second time. "We have a plan. But you have to listen."

We let Ookami and Taiyou in first barking and whimpering. They ran around wildly distracting the Akatsuki. The rest of us crept in though the chaos and towards the table where Taka had been tied. He looked bewildered when he saw the men but let them untie him. I motioned for him to follow and the two of us scampered back towards the south corner. Kariudo and Yabi took the north corner. The two men stood in the west. I whistled and the room froze.

The nin looked around at us then at the table then to the other filled corner. They shouted and charged. Six of them stayed with the dogs. Five went to Kariudo and Yabi. Seven came towards me and Taka, and eight went towards the men. The fight began.

I ducked a fist and smashed my foot into a stomach. Summoning my chakra to my leg I stamped on the ground. It shook throwing everyone but the two men off. In their grasp I could make out a katana in the black hair mans grasp a chakra knife in the blonds and four demon wind shuriken between them. They continued fighting taking the advantage I had given them.

I winced when an open palm slapped my cheek. Everyone had recovered as well. I dodged a kunai and threw a punch landing in air. I jumped flipped and landed on someone's shoulders. The chakra in my feet made them collapse. Some one through a senbon at me too fast for me to dodge. It hit my arm. Pain flashed through me but I ignored it. I had to.

I ripped out the needle and twirled it into my hair before sticking it into a bun. I dashed towards the nin who through it an kicked out but he ducked and swept my feet from under me. I fell hit the ground with a thud. His hand closed on my throat and suddenly I could breathe. I struggled pulling in what little air I could in rasps but my vision began to be obscured by black dots. I stopped wriggling trying desperately to find some source of oxygen. My eyes began to shut and I felt cold.

Oxygen poured into my lungs like a shot. The man was gone in his place above me was Taka. He was staring at me and his eyes. Oh his wonderful blue eyes they contained one black tear drop in his iris. He had finally found his Sharingan. He smiled at me then ran off.

I jumped to my feet and inspected the battle field. Kariudo was short of breath and stumbling with a kunai in his arm. Yabi was inspecting her dog two scratches down her cheek and a bloody side. Taka had a cut on his chest and a senbon stuck in his leg. Ookami was snuffling around my feet and the men. Oh the men. They had lost their masks, goggles and they had taken off their cloaks for the battle and I could see them see them for the first time.

The blond was tall and lean. His face was thin but no too thin. His eyes were a brilliant blue. His nose was small and round with a grinning mouth full of white teeth. Three lines across his cheeks stood out the most. I saw the orange jumpsuit and blue head band that held the blond spiky hair out of his eyes. He was older then I imagined but the picture in my head was accurate enough. Oh how I had missed him.

The black haired was tall and broad. His face was wider and the black hair hung around it. I could see the black eyes swirling with the teardrops of a Sharingan eye. His mouth wasn't smiling but it seemed to be happier. His nose was just the same. I recognized the blue shirt and pants he wore with the red fan on the back. The Uchiha clan sign.

The two men. The men who had been following me, who I had told all my secrets the two men who had watched out for me who'd stopped a robber in my house were my two favorite nin. My lost boys. They were Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke. They were alive.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithouthemLiewithouthem**

Hey sorry i had writers block. No big deal i'm back in action. The word count is 16,621. ~Lark


	11. Naruto, Sasuke and the Akatsuki

I couldn't stop staring, wouldn't take my eyes from them. Both of them. Naruto and Sasuke stood there, not a scratch on them, breathing steady smiling to each other as if they had just played a fun game. They were ALIVE.

In this blood stained room, with corpses all around me, I smiled. Smiled for real. Actual. Beaming and grinning, so wide my cheeks hurt but I couldn't stop. I wanted to laugh, I wanted to cry, wanted to sing and dance and hug them and feel them and make sure they were there. Make sure they weren't just sure figment of my imagination.

"Sakura-sensei." Kariudo called stumbling up to me. "We should leave….Sensei are you all right?"

His gaze followed mine. I knew he couldn't see anything special about the men except they were great fighters. He didn't understand why I was so happy and maybe he thought they were using a jutsu because he attacked them. Naruto dodged the kunai and Sasuke plucked it from the air. Their attention shifted from each other to me. Both stopped smiling.

"Naruto-kun. Sasuke-kun." I mumbled tottering forward.

But I was weak from the fight and the lack of oxygen and I didn't make it far before Taka and Kariudo had to catch me. I struggled out of their arms and took a few more steps. I could hear my breath coming in short high gasps. I tripped over a body and Naruto caught me. I buried my face into his clothes.

He was real. So real. Solid and warm. Strong. He smelled like travel and autumn and a fox. He was there. Not dead. Not blown to bits. Alive and he had been with me since the day I had gone to mourn my family, for three weeks he was there. And so was Sasuke. They had been there for three weeks and I hadn't a clue.

I could feel a sob build in my throat. Tears in my eyes. Feelings. Something I hadn't had in five years. Something that did not belong to the person I was anymore. I could feel again. I could be happy. I could be sad. I could feel. And feeling felt good. It felt so good.

"Let go of her." Taka snarled. But I heard Yabi shush him.

She knew something was happening to me. I knew something was happening to me. Something too big for words, too magnificent for sound. My heart swelled. My stomach flipped. My thoughts scrambled, the tension I had carried for so long released. I was back. I was Haruno Sakura again. I was alive.

I heard a foot step and suddenly a soft hand stroked my hair. I pulled my face from his chest and stared straight into Sasuke's eyes. They were different. I could read them, see the concern in them. His hand kept steady on my hair. I directed my gaze to Naruto seeing the same concern in his eyes. And the tears spilled over.

They ran down my cheeks, over my mouth, dripped from my chin. I wept silently shuddering from my heaving sobs. My tears, tears of joy, of pure elation, soaked Naruto's shirt but he never moved, never flinched. Sasuke's hand kept steady. I cried and they waited for me to finish.

A door slammed, and everyone stiffened. It was the girl with silver eyes and the voice of an old woman. She stared around her at the corpses and the blood and the six people in the room and she shrieked.

But what we heard was different. It was a thousand fingers on chalkboard, hundreds of shouts of pains, millions of chirping bats. The pain of it drove me to my knees. Taka was on the ground in a fetal position, Kariudo writhing next to him. Yabi and the dogs paralyzed. The only ones unaffected were Naruto and Sasuke.

They ran at the girl and her eyes widened. Then narrowed. She ducked the kicks they aimed at her, dodged the kunai like a dance and screamed. The pain in my head intensified. Nothing existed but pain. Mind numbing, throat closing, tear jerking pain. It erased every thought, every idea, from my brain. I couldn't breathe. Couldn't find away to suck in breath around my pain. It was torture.

And then it stopped. And I uncurled, removed my hands from my ears, stood up. The girl was still standing. Without a head. It was on its ear beside her bleeding and fully exposing her esophagus, spine and blood vessels. Her silver eyes were blank and lifeless staring at me, her mouth the epitome of anger. I thought I saw her nose twitch just once but it could have been my imagination. Her body suddenly spasmed and collapsed, crushing her head. I felt bile rise in my throat and heard Yabi vomit.

And then Sasuke and Naruto were back at my side moving just like a single organism. How long had they been living? Why hadn't they killed each other? The thoughts were erased from my head when four more nin rushed through the door.

Naruto threw four kunai and all but one hit their marks. The fourth nin was killed by Kariudo's metal threads. His body was torn to bits chunks flying this way and that. Blood coated the walls and floor. Ookami and Taiyou were sniffing the bodies.

"We should leave." Sasuke said softly, only meant for Naruto and my ears.

I nodded. "Come on!" Yabi, Kariudo, Taka, Ookami and Taiyou looked at me. "We have to get out of here before more nin come. We can't take much more."

They all nodded and shuffled to collect their weapons. I found mine and they fell in step behind me, Yabi picking up her pet and Ookami right on my heels.. Everyone looked towards Naruto and Sasuke. Naruto beckoned and we followed Sasuke bringing up the rear. Naruto led us through a different door we entered, through a maze of tunnels and suddenly we were above ground again. The light was bright, almost blinding and I heard the dogs whimper. I squinted shielded my face from the sun and looked around.

We were in a desert. A hot dry desert not a tree in sight but huge dunes of sand. Dry wind swept across them and the sand swirled. I recognized the desert in the Land of Wind. Perhaps Suna was around here. It wouldn't be bad for my students to see the old sand village. I could visit Temari and Kankuro. I haven't seen them since Gaara died. Poor Gaara.

"Come on." Naruto shouted. "Suna is just over that dune."

And so we went. Huffing and panting, struggling, we climbed up the dune sand sliding into our shoes. It was fun. Yabi fell twice and both Kariudo and Taka had a chance to catch her. Taka looked especially pleased. Ookami and Taiyou made three trips to the top and back down frolicking and yipping. I kept glancing at Sasuke to make sure he was still behind me. He always was and once he smiled when he caught me looking. He'd never smiled at me before.

It was dark when we reached the top of the dune. In the distance, but not that far we could see lights twinkling. A white wall had appeared after the war with Orochimaru. It protected Suna but made it harder to get it. I hadn't made a trip there in four years.

We started the hike down and it was much funnier. Ookami and Taiyou would dance away from our eyesight and come back racing each other a barreling into one of our unsuspecting party. I was knocked over twice, laughing when I hit the ground. My laughter affected my students in an amazing way. Yabi practically beamed, the dogs kept glancing nervously at me, Taka laughed, and Kariudo continually looked surprised.

We slid most of the way down on our butts. Ahead was the three kids and behind, Naruto Sasuke and I all lined up. I was pushed in between them, I wouldn't have it any other way. Taka tried to stand up once and fell face first into the sand, somersaulted twice and stopped laughing. It was amazing. A night I will never forget. A day I will never forget. We reached Suna's gates too soon for my liking.

It was early mourning and watch was just shifting. The wall cast a massive shadow that we entered fifteen minutes before we reached the gates. It was huge astounding and made of pure white stone. Holes and tiny slits in the wall made perfect to throw a senbon or shoot and arrow and not get yourself killed. There were birds nest along the wall using mud. It was busy and cold.

Sasuke and Naruto pulled their goggles and masks back on and slipping into their cloaks. Kariudo looked wary again but he didn't question them. Taka and Yabi exchanged a look.

"Who are you?" growled a guard. He pointed a katana in my direction.

"We're Leaf shinobi." I answered trying to look like I knew what I was doing. "We want to talk to the Kazekage."

"Make them take off their masks." The guard glared at Sasuke and Naruto.

"They can't." I searched my mind for an excuse. "They burn really easily and their eyes are super sensitive. They didn't to come but our Hokage is really rough."

The guard's eyes narrowed and I did the one thing I never thought I would ever do. I flirted.

"Aww please." I whined, fluttering my eyelids and looked out from under my eyelashes. I winked. His face softened but Sasuke stiffened.

"Alright you can go sweetie." He grumbled.

I thanked him saucily, brushed against his side and sashayed away leaving him staring. The others trailed behind me looking surprised. I was bewildered myself. I didn't know I still had it in me. Sasuke kept looking back and glaring at the man.

We trotted along the sand village's streets. It was noting new that I could spot but my students were losing their heads. I suppose the first time I came here I was amazed by the white clothes of the temple folk and the different array of face paint. The smells floating in the air were tantalizing and the sounds were loud and friendly though they hushed a bit when we tramped past.

Soon we reached the Kazakage's office and shuffled though the door. It was small and no one was waiting so we got in very quick. Kankuro was shuffling papers at his desk and glancing out his window when we walked in. His face paint was still there and so was his puppets but his uniform had changed. He no longer wore his hood and his brown hair was a mess. He smiled at me but his eyes went wary when he took in the rest of my team.

"Sakura." He greeted warmly, offered a handshake. I accepted and he pulled me into a hug. The war had changed all of us. Sasuke shook though I didn't notice too much. "What can I do for you?"

"You see," I pondered how to put this gently because his brother had been killed because of them. "We have a new Akatsuki around now."

**LifewithoutthemLifewithouthemLifewithoutthem**

Hey guys. I was so excited when i wrote this one...and my mom interrupted me right in the middle. Anyway word count is: 18,526. ~Lark


	12. Unasked Questions

Kankuro froze, then glared at me. I could see the mistrust, the betrayal, the anger. "No." He protested. "No Akatsuki survived the war. Gaara made sure of that. You lie Sakura."

Both Naruto and Sasuke stiffened, Kariudo glared at the Kazekage, Yabi and Taka argued loudly. But I just waited. He waited. We waited. The room fell silent and Kankuro sank into a chair, passing a weary hand over his face looking so much older then his twenty years. I saw the protest, the fight leave his body.

"Where are they?" He asked in a whispered.

"Just a dune from your south gate." I answered keeping my voice soft, gentle. "They captured me and my team and we barely escaped with our lives. There aren't many of them. I will be willing to help dispose of them."

He nodded and waved me out with directions. "Go. Temari is behind the fourth door to the left, have her accommodate you to rooms then send her up to see me. I'll need to talk to her."

We did as we were told. I led the way again, with the kids shuffling behind us with exhausted grumbles and moans. Sasuke flanked me on the right and Naruto on the left. It was comforting to have them there but I worried my students felt left out. But I WORRIED. I could do that again.

We hustled down the hall, counting doors until we found the forth which happened to be slightly open anyway. The room it hid was a green, covered in soft yellow flowers and antlers. Four windows all draped in green opened to the chattering street below. A bed dressed in yellow, softer then the painted flowers held a woman.

The woman was tall and blond her hair divided into four ponytails. Her eyes were a soft gray and they held a longing, a sadness, deep with in them like this woman would never be happy again. She wore a purple dress but her usual fish net had disappeared transforming into white tights. She wore no shoes on her small feet.

"Huh?" Temari's voice soft and different then I last heard it. It wasn't as rough as before. But then she had spent four hours sobbing over Shikamaru's corpse. "Sakura? Why are you here? Who're you friends?"

"Hi Temari." I whispered. "We just came. Gave some news to Kankuro. He wants us some rooms. Thought you could direct us. Then go see him."

She sighed mumbled about needy brothers and lead us through the hallways down corridors, through doors that looked like walls and dropped through holes in the floor. She didn't look back and Taka who had been falling behind had to run to catch up. She finally stopped at a dead end. It was a lounge. The walls were painted a nice dark green and the four couches matched. The rug was a light blue. The end tables and book cases were painted the same shade. There were three doors leading into different rooms each slightly cracked.

"Here." Temari sighed. "These are your rooms. The two girls in one the young boys in another and the men in the last. If you need something whistle and some one will come down eventually….and I come and get you myself if Kankuro needs you. I have to go see him."

She bustled off and left us to it. The children rushed off, dodging each other and peeking into ach room deciding which was best. Ookami and Taiyou were sniffing corners. Yabi picked a room with a soft red painted the wall two pink beds and two reading chairs along with two complete desks. Taka and Kariudo picked a room with black on the wall gray comforters and two desk reading chairs. No desks adorned this room but a big bookcase stood in a corner. Sasuke and Naruto made no fuss about their own blue room. It held two dark blue beds, two lounge chairs, a book case and one desk.

I sent my students off to bed with a promise that I would wake them should anything of interest happen and snatched a book from Sasuke's and Naruto's shelf. Ookami and Taiyou accompanied Yabi. Curling up the couch I prepared to settle into a nice long read but Sasuke interrupted me. With a sigh he sat down on a couch across from me and watched until I had enough.

"What do you want Sasuke?" I growled and he smirked. Same old Uchiha.

"We expected you to be full of questions. Why aren't you asking any?"

I looked down. This wasn't going to be easy. "Because I'm scared one I do, you'll leave or disappear or find me annoying again." I tried to smile, tried to make my voice uplifting. "Besides, I'm just happy to have you guys back, Sasuke-kun. Just glad to know you are alive."

My voice cracked midway through alive and I knew he saw through my lies. He stood up and sat down next to me started to pet my hair again.

"Sakura do you really think we're going to leave you? Now when we saw the damage we've done? After we made you live like a zombie for so long?" He whispered staring into my eyes.

I nodded. But I wouldn't let myself believe him. If I allowed anything equivalent to hope enter my heart I would die when they left again. No matter what happened, what they promised now. They had left once they could probably do it again. And I wouldn't be able to stand the pain.

"Sakura." Sasuke sighed. "We can't do that. It was hard to see you fighting in the war and just leave you. Torture for us to watch you take hits, watch you suffer pain in the Orochimaru war and then again in the Akatsuki war. It hurt us to leave you behind. Naruto almost tried to kidnap you once when we passed."

My heart was salsa dancing with my windpipe and I was finding it hard to breathe. He could be lying. He could be playing me like a game, could be laughing inside, rolling with mirth. But he seemed so honest, but they had lied to me for five years. But he said he and Naruto hurt leaving me behind. But he could be lying. Oh what a vicious circle indeed.

"You don't believe me do you?" Sasuke asked frowning. "Sakura. Sakura Sakura Sakura Sakura Sakura. We, him and me, Naruto and Sasuke, Uzumaki and Uchiha, have missed you so much. Missed you so much that it hurt. We sat under cherry blossoms every time we could but…We missed you."

"He's right." Naruto agreed from the door way. I jumped but Sasuke didn't seem surprised. Naruto sat down on the other side and put an arm around me.

"Sakura we have missed you so much." Naruto professed. "I don't know how many times we wanted to visit. How many times we told ourselves that you wouldn't want to see us and how much pain we would bring you just so we could be happier." And looking into his bright blue eyes I couldn't help but believe him.

"So what have you been doing?" I asked looking at my hands fiddling with the book. Maybe the question would scare them away.

"We've been hunting down the last of the Akatsuki and Orochimaru's henchmen." Naruto answered.

"We had no idea that another was growing right here." Sasuke added.

"So why did you stalk me for three weeks?"

"Because when we saw in the clearing," Naruto began. "We saw only a shadow of the girl we once knew."

"A wilted blossom if you will." Sasuke grimaced.

Naruto crinkled his nose in a small laugh but continued his explanation. "We thought some one had done some thing terrible. Done some so horrible that it left you empty. We had no idea it was us. Besides," He shrugged. "We couldn't leave you alone."

I raised an eye brow and Sasuke sought to explain. "Even when you were wilted, when you were a zombie we still caught glimpse of who you used to be."

"Yea." Naruto agreed. "Like when you fought us. When you looked at your students all at once. When you slept you looked more like you then ever."

"You watched me sleep?"

"Well yeah." Naruto laughed. "Sakura we were there the entire time! Of course we saw you sleep."

"But why did you sleep yourself? You must be exhausted. Both of you go to bed right now. No Naruto I don't want to hear it. Both of you go. We can continue this conversation when you both have adequate sleep."

"You shouldn't have told her." Sasuke grumbled. But he stood up and shuffled into their room Naruto on his heels.

"Jeez Sakura." Naruto mumbled. "Didn't think you'd go all mom on us." But he looked pleased anyway.

"Good rest Naruto-kun. Sasuke-kun." I pulled the door shut and turned around.

Taka, Kariudo, and Yabi were staring at me. I prayed they didn't hear what I said but from Yabi's widening eyes and Taka's darkening face I knew they heard. And knew they understood who I was talking to. Ookami and Taiyou bounded out behind them and yipped excitedly.

**Lifewithoutthemlifewithoutthemlifewithouthem**

Soo...Word Count: 20,115. ~Lark4560


	13. Conflic's and Stories

Taka glared at me. His eyes were slowly narrowing and I could see his fist clench. He struggled for breathe and eventually managed to gasp some air in. I could see anger roiled inside him.

"That is my uncle." He clenched his teeth and stared at the door. "That is my uncle. The only surviving family member besides my mom I may have. My uncle. And you didn't tell me. Sakura-sensei, you didn't tell me."

Kariudo snorted. His lips were twitching in the first smile I had ever seen him give and he looked like he was going to bust a gut.

"What is so funny to you?" snarled Taka.

Kariudo shrugged. "I thought you would have guessed. It's rather obvious." He smirked. "You really are stupid. And here I thought it was all an act."

Yabi glanced nervously glanced between the two boys who were facing each other and bristling. I could see she was terrified. I had been terrified when Naruto and Sasuke fought like this. They did it more often then Kariudo and Taka.

"How about you stay out of this Izuma?" Taka growled.

"Oh last name. I'm very scared now." Taunted Kariudo.

"You should be. 'Cause I'm going to rip you apart."

"Like you could. I eat guys like you for breakfast." Kariudo inched forward.

"Enough." I said quietly. "You two will not fight. You two will not argue and you two will not pull your team apart like others."

All three of them stared at me as I approached slowly.

"You will not be another team seven. Do you want Yabi to end up like me? Want her to blame herself when your team breaks? Because she doesn't deserve that. She doesn't deserve late nights thinking what she did to destroy the team. Wondering what she has to do to get you two talk again."

They weren't looking at me. They were staring behind me and I got the feeling that the door behind me was open again. I swished around and of course Naruto and Sasuke were standing side by side in the door way. Their cloaks were missing and they're goggles and it was completely obvious who they were. Sasuke started forward first, Naruto hot on his heels. Sasuke reached me first and wrapped his arms around my waist. I t was unfamiliar gesture and I almost shivered because he was so close.

"So you are my uncle?" Taka asked. "You have been alive. You are my uncle. You haven't visited. And you are my uncle."

Naruto blinked at me, Sasuke, and Taka. He twisted his head to the right and then to the left squinting. He crinkled his nose and frowned then tried to turn upside down. We all watched him. Sasuke smirked at him leaving us bemused.

"You know." Naruto pointed out directing his comment towards Sasuke. "When you squint and turn your head upside down and when he's not smiling you two look kinda alike."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and looked towards his nephew. "Yes you are my nephew." He told Taka. "I had some idea that yes….some night Itachi might have taken to bed a woman. And that some child had been born. But I didn't know it was you."

Yabi stared at Naruto. Kariudo gazed at Sasuke. Naruto stared at Ookami and Taiyou rolling on the floor. Sasuke closed his eyes and rested his chin on my shoulder. I stood very very still. This new Sasuke was sort of scary.

We stood like that for at least four minutes before Yabi blurted out, "Excuse me, Mr. Uzumaki?"

Naruto stopped watching the dogs and looked at her. She blushed but managed to continue.

"Um…you were, erm… are my little brother's favorite hero. And I was wondering if you could like sign a piece of paper for me. Please?"

Naruto raised and eyebrow. "Of course, I've never had a fan before. However I wonder if he'll think its real. I am supposed to be dead."

"Oh right." Yabi blushed and looked down. I smiled at her because truth be told I would have asked that too. I patted her shoulder and she smiled at me.

Naruto wondered over to the playing dogs and joined the game of tug-o-war. Yabi followed him with an anxious glance back at her male team mates. Taka smiled at her and she relaxed a little. Sasuke's eye opened and he removed his chin. Both Kariudo and Taka stood straighter and looked more interested, more alert. Sasuke ignored them.

"Sakura," He whispered in my ear. I shivered. "Do you want me to get something to eat? Naruto will watch your students and then you can sleep until I get back."

"Would you really?" I broke the circle his arms made. "I would really appreciate that. Is Naruto okay with this?"

"He is." Naruto piped up from the floor.

"What would you like to eat?" Sasuke asked around and after a couple arguments and barks we picked pizza. He left.

I yawned and stumbled to my room. The bed looked so inviting all pink and fluffy and I can't help but sink into it and pull the blankets around me and fall asleep.

I woke with a start. Without thinking I jumped up, whirled and pulled a kunai from the strap on my leg. Sasuke stared at me with a raised eyebrow. I relaxed and yawned. The room was dark and Yabi was snoring in the bed next to me. Taiyou was curled at her feet and Ookami is sitting on a pillow looking at me, with her black ears pricked. I shook my head at her and smiled at Sasuke.

"What time is it?" I asked

"Roughly eleven thirty." He answered. "I was coming to wake you up. You need to eat."

"So why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

"Well I tried but you threw a kunai at me." He pointed and sure enough there was my weapon embedded into the wall.

I winced as a small memory flickered in my mind. He smiled and I got very shy. It puzzled me. This couldn't be Sasuke Uchiha. Sasuke Uchiha was silent and mean. Well not mean but certainly not friendly. Sasuke Uchiha shows no feelings and certainly doesn't care about me. I frowned.

"Who are you?" I hissed at him.

His eye brows rose. "Sasuke Uchiha. Sakura you know me."

"No I don't. I know Sasuke Uchiha. I know the boy who left to join Orochimaru. I don't know you. Who are you?"

"Sakura…." He raised his hand as if to brush my face. "My name is Sasuke Uchiha, I left at the age of twelve to join Orochimaru. The last thing I said to you was thank you and then I knocked you out. You sent Naruto after me."

"You are Sasuke then." I allowed. "But you're different. Tell me what happened to you."

"But this will take a while." He protested. "And I'll need Naruto."

"You called." Naruto leaned against the door frame and crossed his arms over his chest. "I love story time. And Sasuke you need to exercise you're jaw muscles."

"But she needs to eat."

"She can eat while you talk. And don't worry Sakura anything he leaves out I'll tell you. Here's a secret. He's planning to leave almost everything out." I looked at Sasuke who blushed. But Naruto kept talking. "He doesn't want to hurt his precious Sakura. Doesn't want her to scar her like we are."

"Scar me?" I whispered.

"Well of course." Naruto said. "We've seen some horrific things. But when all you do is hunt down people who kill for fun, you'd seem some gross things too. Anyway," He waved a dismissive hand. "Sasuke will tell you. I'm going to get you some pizza. Ta."

He walked out and I turned to Sasuke. Sasuke was staring at his hands, They were fiddling with a piece of string. He didn't look like he wanted to talk, with his jaw clenched and his eyes hard but I wanted, needed to hear what had happened.

"Sasuke?" I ducked my head a little to catch his eyes but it didn't work.

"I'm waiting for Naruto to come back." He explained in a soft voice. "I don't want to tell it alone."

"Is it really that awful?"

"Its worse then awful. I don't want you to know what I've done. What I've become."

"But I need to know."

"No." He shouted. "No you don't. You don't need to know. You WANT to know. But you have no idea what you're asking for."

"No, you're wrong." I hissed as I stood up and glared at him. He still wouldn't meet my eyes. "I need to know. Imagine if I went off. I disappeared with Naruto and you thought we were dead. And suddenly we popped up again bright and cheery and wouldn't tell you what happened. You'd lose your temper. You'd yell and shout. I won't do that. But I will find out." I threatened. Sasuke finally met my eyes. "I will. If you don't tell me, I'll get Naruto too. But I'd rather you tell me."

"Sakura." He winced. "I don't want you to judge me. Because if you knew you'd hate me. I don't you hating me. Already half this world does."

"She won't hate you." Naruto said. He held a large slice of pizza out o me and I snatched it finally aware of how hungry I was. "She can't. Didn't you listen to what she told us in a forest? And it'd be better if you told her. Shows how much you care and all that."

"When did you become so anti-romantic?" I asked him through a mouthful of pizza.

"When we found out Hinata was dead." Sasuke answered. Naruto looked away, glaring at his shoe. "She found out that Naruto and I were still alive, during a battle. She told him how she felt about him, kissed him and was ran through with a katana. It was his first kiss."

"Oh Naruto." I whimpered. "I'm so sorry. I tried to save her. I was the healer for that block. I tried. I'm sorry. I didn't heal Shikamaru in time either."

"It's okay Sakura." Naruto said. "I know you did you're best. At least you saved Rock Lee. Now," He clapped his hands made a show brightening. "Sasuke you had a story."

**LifewihoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

Sorry. I went on a road trip (ROAD TRIP ROAD TRIP ROAD TRIP WHOOOO-HOOO!!!) and i didn't get a chance to write anything. I had most of this written but i couldn't finish it. Word count: 21,925 ~Lark


	14. A Story with a Surprise Ending

"It started when I left." Sasuke began looking at his hands. I plopped down next to him, still munching on pizza, settled.

"After I knocked you out." His eyes wouldn't meet mine. "I'm sorry about that. Anyway I knocked you out Sakura, then I left. I met Orochimaru's men in the forest and they knocked me out. I don't know what happened in the time I was in there. It was so dark and small I couldn't move, couldn't breathe. As I laid there I thought of you and Kakashi, and Naruto, and of Ino, Shikamaru, Chouji, and all the rest. And I thought if I kill them all then I am free to do as what pleases me.

"Of course it was wrong. I had told everyone, even thought it myself that I was only giving myself to Orochimaru because I needed to kill my brother. But as I lay there and thought to myself in that crushing dark, I realized that I just wanted to be free. Free of the emotional ties, the physical ties, the mental and sentimental ties. Because that was what had ruined me before with Itachi.

"Then I was disgusted. How could I think of leaving behind those who I knew? Those who cared for me? I realized that together with you and everyone I was stronger then Itachi could ever hope to be and I never needed to hunt him down. He just wanted me to be like him. To be homeless and angry, lost and alone. And I wouldn't, couldn't. Because I had a life in Konoha and he didn't.

"I felt us stop, me and who ever was carrying the coffin. And I could feel rage boil through me. And remorse. What had I done? So when the lid was removed shattering as it landed on the stone around me, Naruto was staring at me, and I blamed him. Him for all this. For not stopping me, for allowing you to get too deeply attached, for allowing me to get too deeply attached.

"I shot out of my coffin and punched him. In the stomach, in the jaw." Naruto rubbed his jaw and Sasuke smiled just a bit. "But he refused to hit me. He took every punch every kick with a small groan and a little smile, like he knew something I didn't."

"I did too." Naruto interjected. "I knew you wouldn't actually kill me."

"Oh whatever." Sasuke brushed him off and continued with his story. "Eventually I was worn out and he was bruised all over and we sat panting across from each other. He had a broken nose, black eye and probably a few bruised ribs. I was untouched.

"'Why?!' I yelled at Naruto. 'Why do you follow me? Why won't you fight back?!'

"'Sakura would kill me if you came back bruised.' He explained. 'Besides, you'll come with me where ever I go now. Just to make sure I live.'

"He was right. I couldn't let my best friend, possibly my only friend, die. It wasn't right. It was something Itachi would do. Something I wouldn't.

"'So what do we do?' I asked.

"'Simple.' He got to his feet, unsteady and pulled off his band. 'Leave. You can't go back, you're a traitor and I can't go back without you. Sakura would kill me. So you come with me and we hunt down Akatsuki members until we die.'

"So I stood up and followed him. And we hunted Akatsuki members. The first one we caught was Deidara. The one who caught Gaara and killed him. We caught Deidara and we tortured him, Sakura. We removed each finger nail slowly with bamboo shoots, revealing in the sounds of his screams. I personally cut off each of his toes one by one. We wanted him to feel the pain he had passed to Kankuro and Temari, we thought he deserved it. I chopped off his right hand and Naruto his left. We pulled his teeth from his gums and ripped his eyes from his sockets. I believe Kakashi was the one to find him. When we were done the only thing that marked him as Deidara was the 'D' we painted on his forehead with his own blood. It was awful.

"By that time, the others had killed Kakuzu and Sasori and we didn't have to worry about them. We traveled on whims criss-crossing the world on murmurs of the whereabouts of Akatsuki members. The second we met was Kisame. I peeled his blue flesh from his organs and stuck poisonous snakes up his nose. I gave him the antidote and a meat eating worm. It ate him from the inside out.

"Hidan, we heard, had been decapitated. We danced across our world again seeking and once we found my brother but he disappeared uncover of darkness. We joined that battle when Hinata died. We kept searching till once again we captured an Akatsuki member, this time Konan. Naruto didn't leave her alive. We found out that she held the katana that pierced Hinata…

"It had been two years then. I believe Iruka died killing the leader somewhere in there. We are sorry for his passing. And it took us six months more to find the last surviving Akatsuki member." Sasuke paused and Naruto hung his head. I shifted in my seat and Sasuke continued. "Uchiha Itachi was found in a hidey hole safe and hidden. We found him and before he died, I talked with him.

"'Why'd you do it?' I asked in whisper avoiding his gaze.

"'Because if I hadn't,' Itachi coughed. 'If I hadn't, then Konoha would have been attacked by our clan. Ahh my brother you didn't know that as you set out on this quest did you?'

"I shook my head. 'But why keep me alive?'

"'It was harder then I thought, killing our clan. The ones I knew best I almost didn't try. Haru, Fugaku, Mikoto, were especially hard. I killed them. Then you showed up walking through the door and I couldn't, brother, I just couldn't kill you. You were, are, my younger brother, always there for me when no one else was. You saw through my abilities and saw me. You were my family. Closer then I had ever been to our mother and father. I loved you. Still do. It's a curse.'

"'So why did you tell me to hate you?'

"'You have to kill me, brother. Have to become the hero. Redeem the Uchiha name. You must. I told you I hated you because it was a good incentive but if I had known if I had known, brother, I would never had asked you for it. It turned you just like me. Don't be like me. I am alone. Go back to the village, marry that pretty one I saw once, the girl with the pink hair, do your missions with Naruto. Be happy brother. Be happy Sasuke.'

"That night he killed himself. I think he knew I was going to let him live. I think he thought he wasn't good enough for life. I think he was wrong." Sasuke paused and Naruto patted his shoulder. I reached for his hand and wrapped it in my own. Sasuke squeezed and continued. "The next day, I sat under a cherry tree and thought of coming back. But Naruto convinced me not too. Said I was not yet forgiven. Said that Konoha needed more time to settle over the latest death. I listened.

"We hunted down Orochimaru, it took us two years. But Tsunade got to him first. She was the second person to find out we were alive. Orochimaru lay dead just ten feet away lying in a pool of his own crimson blood. She was alive, just barely, we tried to lend her our chakra but it didn't work. She died in Naruto's arms and the last thing she said to us was, '_Look in on Sakura.' _

"And so we went back to Konoha. Planning to just stop by the memorial and see you through your window. We didn't expect you to attack us or even be there. But we are so glad you were. I am so glad you were." He stopped and folded his arms. "I'm done. That's my story. Do you hate me?"

I shook my head and looked at him. "Sasuke-kun….do you really think I could hate you? Because of what you did? We all did things that we didn't need or want to. War does that to everyone. Not your fault."

"See?" Naruto complained teasingly. "She doesn't hate you. Told you so. Nobody listens to the fox man. How come no one listens to the fox man? We're almost always right."

"If I remember correctly," Sasuke said his tone lighter, his face smoother. "You were once the team Maverick. If it wasn't for my help, you wouldn't have lasted a year without me in the wild with no plumbing."

"Oh Great Master of All Things Untamed," Naruto mockingly bowed deeply. "What would I ever do? How could I ever survive without your shining intelligence, so bright like a star, a radiant diamond, in this cesspool of dark stupidity that you pulled me from, saving me like a drowner?"

I laughed and so did they. We laughed and we giggled and once I believe Naruto snorted which brought peals of laughter from me and Sasuke. We laughed so hard I clutched my side, I gasped for breath. I enjoyed this laughter. We finally stopped. Naruto sat on the ground clutching his sides leaning against the couch cross legged. Sasuke sat straight his arm strung out on the back of the couch, his long legs extended out, his dark eyes glittering with laughter. I was sideways resting against Sasuke, my legs stretched out on the couch. It was very comfortable and we fell into and equally comfortable silence as we soaked up each other's presences.

Taka woke up first. Yawning, he cracked open the door, peered out and tried to shut it out before we noticed. Too late. I motioned him over and he sat on the arm of the other couch. He had a book in his hand. The cover looked suspiciously bloody. He relaxed finally and settled in by the armrest sliding off it too distracted by the book. I saw him wince once or twice but since he didn't put it down and run screaming away some where I let him read it.

Yabi's door opened and she emerged, her hair ruffled slightly. She shuffled to the couch and groggily stretched out on it, on her side, her head in Taka's lap. I think she fell back to sleep. Taka looked pleased, a small smile never quite leaving his face. Taiyou snuffled and jumped up on her mistress and curled into a ball. Ookami leaped onto me, earning an 'ooff' and a small pet. She folded herself into a ball between my legs and started to snore. I guessed it to be about eight thirty in the morning but it was hard to tell.

Kariudo crisply walked out of his room and sat down on the floor, leaning against the couch. Taiyou wagged her tail in greeting and Taka nodded but Yabi didn't wake up. Kariudo pulled his knees to his chest, set one hand in his lap and the other which held a book I hadn't noticed, on his knees as he began to read.

All of sat like that for a long time. It was disgustingly relaxing and I doubt any one wanted to move but moments, as rare as they are, always seem to end way too quickly and ours was no different.

There was shuffling down the corridor, quick sure footstep, fast and light. Naruto and Sasuke barely had time to slip into their cloaks before Temari materialized from the dark. Her eyes swept around at us but focused on me.

"Ah Sakura." She said her voice tight and brisk. "Kankuro and I have come to a decision. We are going to attack. You offered your services and we shall need them. Your team doesn't have to join us but if they want to they are welcome. But the minors are your chose no matter what they want." She paused and waited while Kariudo and Taka gripped out protests. They settled. "We're meeting in one hour. You shall command your own team and we'll need to map out a plan of action. Meet us in Kankuro's office in a half hour. That should sufficient time. I need to summon our troops." And she bustled off.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

Hey. So i'm thinking of starting a new fic, not a Anime one, which means that writing on thisfic will probably go very slow, if not pause for a brief while. But i don't think I'll stop this one so quick. I kinda like it. Anyway just a heads up. So new Characters in this Chapter. Um Itachi mentions Fugaku and Mikoto. They are his parents, and Haru is the lover he is suposed to have but i coudn't find the name so i used one of my own. Check out my profile to find out what it means...Whoa. Now I'm soliciting looking at my file. There must be something wrong. And I've talked too much. So Word Count: 24,083. ~Lark


	15. Plans and Expectations

I turned to my companions. Naruto and Sasuke were standing next to each other, shoulder to shoulder, two twin smiles lighting up though Sasuke's wasn't as large nor bright. Kariudo was standing in front of them an intense look on his face. Taka was still sitting but he was acting more alert. Taiyou had her head up but probably would have been more excited if her mistress had been awake. Ookami was pacing around my feet.

"So what should we pack?" Kariudo asked.

"Oh no." I protested. "No, no. I promised I'd have you home safely and taking you to the most dangerous battle we could possibly find ON your first mission would not cut it. Nu-uh. No."

"Why can't we?" cried Taka softly trying not to wake Yabi. "You said that going on a mission could help us. This could be what we need!"

That last sentence woke Yabi. She moaned softly and slowly sat up. She yawned, stretched and rubbed her eyes. She didn't seem to notice the atmosphere. Taiyou squeaked her protest and yawned too. Both girls, dog and human, stood.

"So what's going on?" She asked lightly.

"Sakura-sensei," Kariudo told her mockingly. "Says we can't help in the attack of the new Akatsuki, who just so happened to capture us very recently."

"What? Why can-" She started but was cut off.

"Don't talk about Sakura like that." Snarled Naruto advancing on Kariudo. Sasuke held him back but Sasuke was glaring at Kariudo too.

"Naruto please." I begged but then directed my tone sharper. "Don't talk like that to me. I am trying to save you, to protect you. And you will listen to me. I'm trying to keep my promises to your parents."

All three children looked sheepish but they held their ground. Naruto and Sasuke backed away giving us room to fight. I prepared myself for a barrage but it never came. Yabi leant on her right leg and cocked her hip attaching her hands to her hips and stuck her tongue in her cheek. Taka crossed arms and glared at me pressing his lips together. Kariudo locked his arms behind him spread his legs and erased all the emotions on his face. For some reason this made me angrier.

"I want you to go home. Safe." I snarled at them. It was a stronger emotion then I had ever used with them before, I'm sure I surprised them. "You will go home. I don't want you to go home seeing the things this war will do. You will see things that will haunt you. That will stalk in the night. Stop you from leaving the village by yourself. The images will burn themselves into your eyelids. You'll not be without them. You won't feel safe. You want that? You want to go through what I had to? To become this calloused this cold? To be able to turn your feelings on and off like me? Is that what you want? Who you want to become? I won't allow that to happen."

All three dropped their poses. They stared at me, watched me. Kariudo slacked and his knees bent slightly. Taka's face twisted and I could tell he was thinking hard. Yabi was the only one who did anything productive.

"We're going to have to become that way." She said softly looking at her hands. "So why not sooner then later?" The boys nodded.

"Because this innocence," I explained equally soft. "This un-taintedness you have, you should want to keep it as long as possible. You should treasure it, cherish it. Because once it's destroyed, you'll miss it. You'll want it back. I know this."

Every stared at me. They stood stalk still and watched. Even Naruto and Sasuke. I felt self-conscious and ducked my head sure I was blushing. I heard footsteps and suddenly Yabi was holding my hand. Kariudo placed his hand on my back gently and Taka stood in front of me. Naruto and Sasuke took one step forward but didn't touch me. I was glad. This seemed more like a student/teacher thing rather then just a general hug Sakura thing.

"We want to go." Taka whispered gently. "We want to make sure you come home safe. We can't stand around here knowing that you're risking your life and that we can't help. Sakura-sensei, you're like the aunt we never had. The one person, one adult I should say, who actually pays attention to what we say."

"Sometimes," Yabi broke in. "Sometimes our parents are too busy looking after other siblings to pay, much attention."

"Or," Kariudo piped in. "They're much to focused on what's best for them in the government and how to get better missions. Other times, one of our parents doesn't care what happens to us, as long as we stay out of their way." Obviously Taka had told them about his home situation….when?

"But you," Taka finished. "You do care. We know so don't try to deny it. We want to keep you safe. Just once you know? We want to see you home safely too."

I couldn't speak. My lips were numb and so was everything else. I had shown them nothing but cold mentorship and they saw through my mask to who I was. I hadn't been overly nice, overly caring, overly fun, or anything. I had been as normal as I could get but still…Kakashi had given me an extraordinary team.

"Fine." I grumbled my will shattered. "You can come. But you will follow every one of my orders with out complaint. So if I tell you to get out, you do. No questions asked. Pack your weapons nothing else. Yabi if you need more military rations for Taiyou, ask Temari. Go."

They cheered and trotted off to pack. I could hear Kariudo and Taka saying things. Taiyou yipped and followed Yabi. Ookami stayed at my feet seeming to know how much the decision had cost me. Naruto and Sasuke patted my shoulder as they pasted. With a sigh I entered my room and gathered my weapons, including the kunai in the wall.

Fifteen minutes later Temari came back and found us, me in the lead again, waiting for us. She didn't comment on the children but just looked hard at me. Then with a swish she turned and led us back towards Kankuro's office. This time I wasn't as tired and managed to memorize most of our trip including the secret knocks one had to know. We arrived and Temari entered without asking.

Kankuro looked just the same, only more tired. His face was a mask and when he saw us he passed a hand over his face and sighed. Then he sat and drew out a map.

"This is where our scouts found the new Akatsuki." He pointed. "Sakura, we are dividing our shinobi into three different teams. We want you to be leader of the third cell. Your companions can join you and you'll have four more under your command. Is that fine?"

"Yes thanks, Kazekage."

"Good. Now, as I said you're the third cell. Back up strictly speaking. Kakashi would kill me if I killed his favorite student. We found two entrances. Temari is going through the first and I'm going through the second. We want them trapped. However, they know they're home? Work place? Whatever, they know the place better then we do so they could escape. Aside from back up I want you prepared to kill anyone who gets out. Seriously. I want no prisoners. Don't look at me like that, Sakura. If they ever escape our guard that's another Akatsuki they could start and some one would have to take care of. I really don't want to deal them again. Brings back unpleasant memories.

"Anyway, kill anyone who gets out. If we want you, I'll send a Shinobi to fetch you. The fastest we got. We want you down there ASAP. Go in through the one the Shinobi came out of. When you're in I want a letter bomb placed on the entranced to seal off any other escapees. Fight your way in and meet up with me. I'll tell you where you need to be. When the fighting's over, find me.

"We'll want you down there after the battle too. To hunt out hiders or prisoners. And to explore. When we get down there, find me, I'll give you two more men, and a section of the place to search. Any money or anything of value, you'll split it evenly between the men and anything left over you'll give to me.

"Then clean up. Any bodies will be taken out of the cave thing and thrown in a pit or next to where we're going to dig one anyway. We'll bury the bodies. I want you alone Sakura, not anyone else, to plant letter bombs all over. Temari and I'll do the same and if we're lucky, we'll have buried the hideout.

"That's it. After the battle you're free to leave and always welcomed back." He licked his lips and reached in his pocket, pulled something out. "Here." Kankuro handed us six bright strips of yellow clothe and two florescent yellow collars. "So you know who to kill and who not to. And so you're not killed either."

We took our clothes and waited for instructions. When none were given I simply assumed we could leave. I opened the door and with my team around me, left leaving Temari and Kankuro alone to do what ever they did when we weren't around.

We tramped back to our rooms slowly, getting lost and having to re-trace our steps and all that. Finally we reached our rooms and stiffly we sat on the couches, nervous for the battle to come. Taiyou and Ookami sat at straight up and ready ears perked. I figured it wouldn't take long for Temari to come get us with all our wondering around and sure enough she came. She didn't say a word but lead us up the stairs and through a couple rooms to a court yard.

It was obviously well cared for with tall thick trees and ferns and bushes and soft grass. Tall trees lined the path and benches were stationed every few feet, covered in vine plants. I could hear birds in the trees and little animals rustled in the undergrowth. To the left of the path, two men stood quietly watching us watch them.

One was small, and stout. His hair was a deep russet and his eyes and sea green. He wore a soft blue shirt and black pants. They suited him well. I could see the yellow clothe band wrapped around his arms.

The other man's yellow band was more obvious. He wore it around his head along with a small patched hat. His hair was strawberry blonde and his eyes were a classic brown. He was lanky and skinny. He carried a katana on his back and I recognized him. Oh dear, I knew flirting would come back and bite me in the butt.

"These are your men." Temari gestured to the smaller man. He stepped forward and bowed. "Akasuna Kajuen." The guard stood forward and bowed. "Monzaemon Hachi."

I bowed in turn and asked, "What are their specialties?"

"Akasuna is skilled with stealth and hand to hand combat." Temari replied. "And Monzaemon is a katana man through and through."

"Very well." I considered where to put them.

Just before Temari left she called over her shoulder, "Acquaint yourselves and meet us upstairs in seven minuets. Akasuna will show the way."

I nodded to them and introduced my team excluding Naruto and Sasuke. They nodded but gave no names to themselves.

"Alright, here's the plan." I clapped my hands gently. "I'm sure you know our job. But I want everyone close to me. No more then twenty feet away. It's my job to keep all of you safe and I can't do that if I can't see you. IF we get separated I want you to find me or one of these two," I gestured to Naruto and Sasuke. "And stay right next to them. I DON'T care how old you are. You will do it. Now Akasuna if you would be so kind as to show the way."

Akasuna took us through hallways and it seemed like we were following the same path only different furniture. We reached the office in time to see Kankuro and Temari suit up. They nodded to us and motioned to follow and we did.

The room we entered was more like a ware house. A hundred Shinobi stood in perfect rows wearing the same clothes as Kankuro or Temari depending on gender. It was amazing. The Shinobi huzzahed when they saw us.

"We have a new threat. Just outside our home." Kankuro shouted to the congregation. "We must protect our family and our neighbors. And so we shall."

He leapt down from the balcony. And joined his troops his sister right behind him. We followed. And the march to defeat the Akatsuki began.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

So I accidently forget to save my work so this is just the previous thing completeled. It's basically the same chapter just more of it. So Word Count:26,318~Lark


	16. The Battle

The march was hot and sweaty and short and quiet, I doubted they Akatsuki could hear us coming. Taiyou stuck close to Yabi's heels and Ookami took her hint. Temari stopped with half the company. My team followed Kankuro until Naruto told me it was half way. I halted. Kankuro nodded to me.

"Naruto, Sasuke," I drew them to the side to keep they're name hidden. "I need you to cover the exit Kankuro is entering. I can't send anyone else and I know you can handle that. Please?"

"How'll we know when to enter?" Sasuke asked, staring at me.

"I'll send Ookami to you. Please just go. I need you to cover bot. If you want I'll give you Akasuna. Please."

"You don't need to beg Sakura." Naruto said. "And we don't need Akasuna. We'll do it. C'mon Sasuke."

Naruto left struggling over the sand in his cloak still not as graceful as say…Sasuke. Sasuke hovered. He glanced at my team behind me then down at Naruto. No one was paying attention. Monzaemon was showing off his skill with the Katana and he was really good.

Sasuke's warm hands cupped my face and he stared worriedly at me. "I'd rather stay here Sakura."

"Um…" I didn't know what to say. He startled me. I felt kinda amazed. "You'd be…you'd be….more….more useful if…..if you were back…..with Naruto."

He smiled gently and nodded, dropping his hands and walking away following Naruto. I shook myself and turned back to my team. The only one watching was my dog. I still blushed though.

"Com'on." I called and we marched off, following the tracks left by Kankuro's team. It didn't take much longer and finally we were at the entrance.

We waited. Monzaemon and Akasuna sat down next to each other and were talking softly occasionally glancing at me. I could fell the disrespect rolling off them in waves. My students including the dogs were laying on their backs breathing deeply and pointing out shaped clouds. I saw Yabi's hand go out twice as much as the boys. She was a wonderful girl honestly. A great fighter, a wonderful conversationalist, and a perfect soul. I had never heard her say a rude thing about anyone, unless of course she meant it in a joke or they deserved it.

With a bang the flare sent to signal the beginning of the fight. All three children shot up and the men slowly stood up languidly. Ookami growled. Kankuro's troop's surged forward feet making a dull thud in the sand and a dull battle cry echoed from lips. We watched them go, waving. I wanted to join them and so did the rest of my team. But everyone held they're positions like the good shinobi they are.

For the most part it was boring. None tried to escape and no one called from the hole to fetch us. We heard shouts and Jutsu's and some times a small rumbled but nothing of concern. The sun beat on us harshly and I could feel the back of my neck burn. Kariudo was sitting quietly and Yabi was making clouds figures again. Taka, Taiyou, and Ookami were sleeping. The men were playing cards.

Suddenly without warning a man popped out of the hole. He whipped his head around looking for something and finally found it when his eyes rested on me. I leapt at him pulling a Kunai out for its sheath but he waved his arm displaying a yellow band. I stopped and he gestured to follow. Then pointed to the hole then back at me. Why wouldn't he just talk? His mouth opened to spit out a gob of blood and I saw a little pink stump waving this way and that. He'd had his tongue cut out during this battle. No wonder we heard shouting but no words. I whistled and led the way as my team entered the battle below.

It was a madhouse. I saw shinobi battling and kunai burying deep into bodies, people lying in pools of blood. I wanted to turn and cover the children's eyes. It was horrific.

The man tugged my arm and pointed, where Kankuro and Temari fought back to back, Kankuro twisting his arms and twitching his fingers and controlling his puppets while Temari kept him from being attacked directly. Puppet masters were not good with hand to hand combat preferring to hide some where and use their puppets.

I bent down to Ookami's level and scratched her ears whispering for her to go find Sasuke, and Naruto. Off she shot, dodging legs and setting as many fighters as she could off balance giving their opponent the upper hand.

The man jumped back into battle as was stabbed by a Kunai. He fell, a line of blood dripping from his mouth a look of surprise etched into his face. I waked past his body jumped over two fighters and landed next to Temari who glared at me and tapped her brother on the shoulder. He jumped and focused on me though continued to fight.

"Good." He rasped licking his lips. "I need you just to fight. They are many but the powers they have are amazing. The one I'm fighting is also fighting eight others all at the same time. Just put yourself in there Sakura but don't get hurt."

I nodded and wadded my way through the fight back to my team. With out hesitation I relayed orders and jumped back into battle.

Kankuro was right. The skills of the fighters were magnificent. The first I fought was a man his eyes seemed blood-red and his hair a pure white like he'd been down here to long. He growled at me, flinging Kunai faster then I could see. I rolled and dodged all but one. It sank into my leg but not deep enough to do much damaged. I pulled chakra to my fist and slammed it into the ground. The Earth shook knocking the shinobi off balance. I punched him in the face then again in the stomach. A drop kick to the back and then I killed him. It got easier in time.

Then next fight a woman, short and plump, looking more like a grandma then an actual threat melted the dagger in my leg burning the muscles and flesh with just a glance. The pain almost over took me but thank god for Taka who threw a shuriken that hit her right between the eyes. He smiled at me a disappeared.

It reminded me that I needed to check on my team. Taka, I'd just seen and he looked fine so the need to worry about him was minimal. Kariudo was standing at the edge of the battle throwing weapons with metal threads at enemies. He dodged return weapons and used them too. The two men I had lost but they could take of themselves. I frantically searched for Yabi or Taiyou and saw them. Taiyou's head was brushing the ceiling and she was snarling and ripping apart enemies, Yabi dancing between her legs keeping people from her flanks. Everyone seemed fine and I jumped back into battle.

A small woman, with forest eyes and brown hair, hissed at me and threw a shuriken. I dodged and threw one in return. She opened her mouth wider then humanly possible and swallowed it. A muscle in her arm grew larger and she grinned. Still watching me, as I crept closer to engage in hand to hand combat, she pulled off her finger and shaped it, molded it into a kunai. She threw it and I ducked. It missed but clipped some of my hair. I leapt for her but when I punched her it felt like punching metal, she didn't flinch just laughed. I winced. Then I summoned chakra to my arm and slowly expanded it until BOOM! The woman exploded. I turned away.

Another woman, broad and skinny, lanky almost took her place. I was tempted to kill her as well but the yellow band around her thigh stopped me. She was struggling with nothing. Her arms flailed and she kicked wildly. But she was attacking nothing. I looked around and there, in a dark corner hidden by swirling colors and surging bodies was a child, small barely nine years old laughing as he watched the woman fight. Without thinking, I lunged forward and stuck a kunai through his throat. Blood welled at the spot gushing over my hand and his laughed shifted to a strangled gurgle and the boy fell. The body collapsed at my feet. I fought the urge to vomit.

And then there was my team. Naruto and Sasuke kicked the body away discreetly so I wouldn't notice while Kariudo and Taka kept away any attackers. Ookami was pressing herself against my knee comfortingly while Taiyou rested her chin on my shoulder.

"C'mon Sakura-sensei." Yabi whispered. "Just a little more fighting. It wasn't a kid, Sensei. Just a small man. Think of it as a small man. See? Better already. Just a little more now. You can do it. It must be hard to do this when you just got your emotions back. You can do it. You're strong. C'mon Sensei."

I nodded at her, a small 'I'm okay' smile on my face and they left off rejoining the battle which had been reduced to a fray. I went with them. Sasuke watched nervously from his fight but let me fight.

I fought a tall man with long black hair and he seemed terrified. He kept tripping and I almost didn't want to kill him. Once I got too close. He'd fallen on his face after jumping a kunai; it looked like a child and I felt my heart melt. So I bent down to help him up and faster then I had ever seen anyone move his neck elongated and his teeth grew to fangs and he tried to bite my neck. I moved out of instinct and he bit my shoulder. The pain in my arm was loud and unbearable. Like a shock going through me. It burned ripping and tearing at me. I tried to keep awake, tried really hard. But I just couldn't. Slowly my vision faded to black. I heard a shout…Sasuke's I recognized it. Then Naruto's voice, and Yabi's, Kariudo's, Taka. Ookami howled.

Then more voices. Voices I hadn't heard in a while. Three or four years to be honest. I heard Iruka's deep voice, and Hinata's soft one. Was that…was that Shikamaru? And Tsunade? No way. When had Chouji's voice sounded so clear? And Neji was here too, how wonderful. One voice was almost unfamiliar but it was Shino's. Ahh friends wait till you find out Naruto and Sasuke are still alive. How excited you'll be. I can't wait to tell you.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

Gah that was so hard to write. For me at least. So Word Count: 28,142~Lark


	17. Gone but Still Watching

My funeral was small with only a limited amount of people in attendance. It was held in Konoha with only my parents, my team, my friends, Sasuke, Naruto and Kakashi there. Temari and Kankuro would have showed but they had to deal with the aftermath of the attack.

I remember the pain and how I died. But mostly I remember how devastated everyone was. Sasuke went became the Sasuke he had been before he left. Yabi cried for three days and still moped after. Taka wouldn't talk, didn't say a word, no matter how anyone tried to get him to. Kariudo would stand so still in the middle of halls looking lost and forlorn. Naruto kept Ookami with him at all times and could often be seen with his face buried in her black coat, crying. Temari and Kankuro were also devastated but had to hide it, for their country. Both Naruto and Sasuke had stopped wearing the cloaks and went around as their selves. I was proud of them.

I wanted to tell them I was alright. I am here with Shikamaru, Chouji who has lost weight. And Tsunade has quit drinking. Hinata still loves Naruto and will wait for him as Shikamaru was waiting for Temari. Iruka has reunited with his family and Neji is still all about 'destiny'. I didn't want anyone to worry, or cry. They should be happy. I'm safe up here, and would watch over them for always.

They made the trip home silent and fast, barely stopping for sleep and food. I wanted to tell them to slow down, _take it easy, you've just had a huge fight, _but they wouldn't listen. Of course they couldn't hear me anyway. Sasuke wouldn't put down my coffin or let anyone else carry it. At night, when it was his watch, he opened it and stroked my body's cheek gently. I was sitting next to him when that happened and I touched his cheek but my hand passed through it.

The return to Konoha was brutal. They stood at the gates so long I wondered if they would actually go in. But finally Sasuke moved forward and the rest trailed after them like ducklings. They followed him all the way to Kakashi's office. Thank goodness it was empty except Kakashi himself who stood up disbelievingly when he saw Naruto and Sasuke. He froze though when Sasuke ripped off the coffin lid revealing my body. Kakashi shook his legs became unstable to hold him and he collapsed. He cried. And my team cried and I cried for them. Finally Kakashi took hold of his self and sent messages to my friends. Then he put the lid back on.

Rock Lee and Tenten came first, Rock Lee insisting to be punctual. The banter between them stopped when they saw Naruto and Sasuke and though Rock Lee looked like he was about to pee his pants, they caught the depressed mood and barely reacted after that. Barely spoke. I think they figured out what had roughly occurred.

Ino was next. She came bounding in, looking forward for her next missions, and _'was there a mission for her entire team?' _She seemed to faintly recognize Naruto and Sasuke and got very excited but after a quick head count her bubble of fun deflated. She gently leaned against Kakashi's desk looking lost and bewildered. Tenten put an arm around her.

Kiba and Kuma arrived last. They were arguing when they entered over what kind of welcome home cake they should get Yabi and if Kiba should really accept this mission in case she comes home while he's gone. Akamaru trotted in after them. Taiyou and Ookami stirred but didn't joyous greet him like they usually did. Kuma spotted her daughter first. Yabi was looking particularly sad, having hoped that the Hokage could miraculously bring me back to life and been disappointed. The bandage around her face was just a little bloody, the wound reopened during the cry fest.

"Where's Haruno!?" Roared Kuma making everyone jump. "Where is she? I'll kill her for doing this to my little girl!!"

Kiba gazed around the room and came to the same conclusion as Ino, Tenten and Rock Lee. His eyes darted from Naruto and Sasuke then dropped to the coffin. He staggered, leaning on his wife for support. Kuma stiffened more.

Her glare jumped to Naruto and Sasuke. "You leave him alone right now." She shouted. It made sense she would assume they were doing it. She'd never seen them before. "Stop what ever Jutsu you're using on my family and leave. Send them away Kakashi. NOW!"

"MOM!" Bellowed Yabi. It even surprised me. I'd never heard her speak in more then a loud voice but apparently she had inherited her mother's lungs. "YOU STOP! SASUKE AND NARUTO AREN"T DOING ANYTHING!! GET OUT OR SHUT UP!!"

Kuma shut up. Kakashi sighed deeply and lifted the lid to my coffin. Ino crumbled to the floor burying her face in her hands sobs wracking her body. He'd just confirmed her worst fears. Tenten cried more quietly pushing her face into Rock Lee's shirt. Rock Lee kept his face straight but I could see the tears in his eyes. Kiba stumbled back and leant against the door breathing heavily. Kuma's eyes were wide and tears poured down her face. My chest hurt watching them. Kakashi knelt to comfort Ino but she pushed him away tears dripping down her face.

Seeing the adults cry, the grown-ups who were supposed to have it together should have shook the children but they remained hard watching with dulls. It was worse then the crying. If they ended up like me, I would personally send them to hell.

Kakashi pulled things together and with everyone's input planned the funeral in six hours as well as the making sense of the story and deciding what should be done about Naruto and Sasuke.

Naruto and Sasuke were the simplest to figure out. They wanted a home just outside of Konoha, seeds to plant their own food, and no more battles. Ever. Sasuke was excused from any charges after he told his story and made it obviously clear he was helping not hurting. Ookami was to go with them and the people in this room were to be the only visitors. Taka tried to talk them into letting him and his mom stay there but they turned him down.

My funeral was quick barely forty words spoken but the meaning they held was too much. The women broke down and cried again and the men tried to stay strong for them. The dogs howled at the end and everyone quickly dispersed.

I feared my team would become like me. But time heals all wounds and soon they were back to normal. Their new sensei, Kakashi himself, teaches them better then I could ever and they get extra training from Naruto and Sasuke. Taka and Yabi are dating and Kariudo has a dog from one of Kiba's new litters.

Kiba, Rock Lee, and Tenten still do missions and Tenten's expecting her first child. Akamaru died and Kiba needed Kuma to help to get through it. Kuma has become more tame since then. They have remained good friends.

Ino spends most her time with Naruto and Sasuke. They've made a room for her and though she still goes on missions they're becoming less frequent. Kiba finally relented and let her have her dog.

Every one is happy but sometimes they get together and stare at the stars and talk about me. I wonder if they know that we up here stare back and talk about them.

Oh and Iwamaru finally got his autograph from Naruto and an extra one from Sasuke.

**LifewithoutthemLifewithoutthemLifewithoutthem**

Wow. I wanted to kill some one in my story. The whole dead thing really isn't me but it seemed like a good idea. I kept dancing around killing Yabi, Kariudo, or Taka but i couldn't pick. Of course then i wrote the end to the last chapter. I didn't add the last paragraph on that one until i began this one. It fits kinda. I just wanted to say thanks to all the readers, past present, or future for swallowing my god awful writing. The final Word Count: 29,444. Can you belive it? I was 556 away fro breaking thirty thousand. So close. Anyway bye. ~Lark.


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